If WestJet pilots go on strike, here’s what we need to know

If your moody is grounded by a WestJet pilots’ strike, we competence be improved off if you’re drifting outward Canada than in, an airline newcomer disciple warns.

The airline’s pilots — represented by the Air Line Pilots Association — voted 91 per cent in foster of a strike progressing this month and could have walked off a pursuit final Saturday. Their kinship pronounced it would wait until after a May prolonged weekend and for now, both sides contend they sojourn in negotiations anticipating to strech a deal. 

• Anxiety lands as WestJet commander strike looms
• WestJet and pilots resume agreement negotiations in Calgary

If there is a strike, a airline has betrothed to reinstate tickets of any flights cancelled as a result.

However, airline newcomer disciple Gabor Lukacs says WestJet’s obligations to a business go serve than that, depending on a ride circumstances.

“The rights of passengers heavily depends on where they are drifting to and from,” he said.

According to a post about a appearing strike on his website Air Passenger Rights, Lukacs says WestJet has several obligations in cases of ride with general itineraries.

If your moody is withdrawal from a EU or EEA

For flights cancelled since of a strike that were requisitioned to leave from a European Union or a European Economic Area to Canada, he says WestJet is thankful underneath a European Parliament government to:

• Give money remuneration of 600 EUR (or 300 EUR if a newcomer is behind by reduction than 4 hours).
• Offer transport leading or to a passenger’s indicate of origin.
• Refund a airfare if a newcomer wants to lapse to their indicate of origin.
• Provide caring such as meals, accommodation, belligerent ride and giveaway calls and emails.

If your moody has an general segment

For flights that embody an general shred (e.g., New York to Calgary), Lukacs says the airline is thankful underneath a Montreal Convention to:

• Reimburse reasonable losses for meals, belligerent transport, accommodations and communication.
• Compensate for mislaid wages.
• Pay a cost of a moody on another conduit if a airline is incompetent to arrange a new moody within a reasonable volume of time.

Lukacs says a source of newcomer rights here is partial of a Montreal Convention, that says a airline can equivocate guilt for delays usually if a airline proves that a airline, a airline’s agents and a airline’s servants have taken all reasonable measures to forestall a check or that there were no such measures available. 

Nevertheless, WestJet might puncture in a heels and exclude to recompense unless and until passengers take them to court.

If your moody is wholly domestic

“The misfortune conditions for passengers is if they fly wholly within Canada, since there, usually WestJet’s manners apply,” Lukacs said, observant that a airline defines strikes as a “force majeure” that relieves a association from carrying to yield any wider remuneration to inconvenienced travellers.

• For flights particularly within Canada, WestJet is thankful to yield passengers a choice between rebooking flights during a after date, giveaway of charge, or providing a full refund.

Better protections needed, Lukacs says

Lukacs says Canada’s stream regulations don’t put adequate responsibility on airlines to recompense domestic passengers.

“This should be a private matter between WestJet and a pilots. And passengers should not have to bear any of that financial burden, in my opinion.”

The biggest adhering point in negotiations is either pilots for WestJet’s new bonus airline, Swoop, will be partial of a kinship or not. Swoop starts flying on Jun 20 and is designed to be an ultra low-cost carrier. WestJet has been looking outward of Canada for Swoop pilots.

Both sides contend they sojourn committed to negotiating a deal. 

Flight Centre Travel Group vice-president of communications Allison Wallace says she expects WestJet will be stretchable with a rebooking and cancellation policies in a eventuality of a strike.

“This might engage them waiving termination fees for those whose flights are directly affected, or waiving change fees for those on influenced flights to concede them to ride during an unblushing date or time,” she pronounced in an email to CBC News.

“We have seen this really recently with industrial movement taken by Air France over a past few weeks, and with Lufthansa final year as well.”

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Article source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/westjet-passenger-rights-strike-pilots-gabor-lukacs-1.4673124?cmp=rss