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Calgary, AB — As conciliation between WestJet and CUPE 8125, the union representing WestJet flight attendants, approaches its conclusion, the local is calling on the federal government to respect the collective bargaining process and refrain from unnecessary intervention under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code.
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Section 107 was intended to address exceptional circumstances under the Canada Labour Code. However, its increasing use in federally regulated labour disputes has raised serious concerns throughout the labour movement about government interference in the collective bargaining process.
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Those concerns intensified last summer when the federal government used Section 107 during the Air Canada flight attendants’ labour dispute, preventing workers from exercising their full bargaining rights and referring the matter to the Canada Industrial Relations Board. Many unions viewed that intervention as a troubling precedent that risks undermining confidence in free and fair collective bargaining.
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“Collective bargaining and the right to strike are protected rights in Canada,” said Alia Hussain, President of CUPE 8125. “When governments intervene before parties have had the opportunity to fully exercise those rights, it risks altering the balance that is essential to meaningful negotiations.”
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CUPE 8125 believes this issue extends far beyond WestJet. The growing willingness of governments to intervene in federally regulated disputes affects not only workers bargaining today, but every worker and union that will bargain in the future. The integrity of the collective bargaining process depends on both employers and governments respecting the rights that workers have fought for and that Canadian courts have repeatedly affirmed.
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While the union remains committed to reaching a negotiated settlement, significant issues remain unresolved as conciliation approaches its conclusion. If an agreement is not reached and the statutory process under the Canada Labour Code is exhausted, WestJet flight attendants could be in a legal strike position in the first few days of August.
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CUPE 8125 is calling on both WestJet and the federal government to commit to allowing the collective bargaining process to proceed as intended and to provide every opportunity for the parties to reach a negotiated agreement at the bargaining table.
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