TRAVELERS are furious after a popular budget airline canceled hundreds of flights, leaving many customers stranded with holidays and even wedding plans in jeopardy.
WestJet, Canada’s second-largest airline, canceled about 407 flights over the weekend due to an unexpected strike by its maintenance workers union.
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The cancellations affected at least 49,000 domestic and international travelers across Canada, according to the Associated Press.
Many criticized the airline for the sudden travel changes on social media.
“Thank you @WestJet, our wedding in Mexico is ruined due to your incompetence in mitigating this strike,” read one flyer he wrote in X.
“Tens of thousands of dollars were lost because you couldn’t swallow your pride and save the biggest travel week of the year.
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“Westjet will never recover from this incompetence.”
“Hey @WestJet get a grip. Sincerely, Canadians,” wrote another.
“My daughter is stuck in Denver trying to get back to Calgary. She had to pay for a hotel, an $800 flight home and meals,” the family member of a stranded traveler posted.
“She’s missing work tomorrow and can’t get hold of anyone at @WestJet.
“Great job making sure your customers are safe! This concerned mom will never let anyone fly on Westjet.”
Several other customers revealed that the outages made them decide never to fly with WestJet again, even though they had been flying with the budget airline for years.
Many also claimed they were unable to contact customer service to receive refunds for their cancellations.
“Officially done [with] Westjet,” wrote one X user.
“This is the third or fourth time they have messed up our travel plans.
“We have been loyal Westjeters for many, many years. They can’t keep their employees happy. It’s time to go.”
“thank you @WestJet for not paying your mechanics enough so they went on strike on a holiday weekend,” posted another.
“Thank you @WestJet for sending a cancellation notice at 2am the night before my flight.
“Thank you @WestJet for not taking any calls and holding people’s money hostage, never again.”
“@WestJet I will never fly with you again,” said one user.
“It screwed me up so much today when you could have given us adequate notice to cancel our flights.
“Tried to contact customer service for almost 12 hours to get a proper refund. ZERO HELP.”
The outages began on Saturday and are expected to continue until July 2, according to WestJet’s website.
The cancellations are impacting “all WestJet destinations,” the company said.
While we are saddened to hear the notice you have received, please know that these difficult decisions are made with the safety of our guests and employees as the top priority.
WestJet
The company apologized to customers multiple times in responses to posts on X, encouraging travelers to visit the Guest Update page for the most up-to-date information about their flights.
Despite the backlash, WestJet defended the sudden cancellations and lack of advance notice to passengers – some of whom claimed to have discovered the flight change on their way to the airport.
“Thank you for getting in touch and our sincerest apologies for the disruption to your travel plans,” the company wrote on X.
“While we are saddened to hear the warning you have received, please know that these difficult decisions are made with the safety of our guests and employees as the top priority.”
The strike began Friday after the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association alleged that WestJet was unwilling to negotiate, according to the Associated Press.
This came after two weeks of discussions over a new agreement between the union and the airline.
However, discussions came to a head on Thursday when the federal government reportedly called for binding arbitration, meaning a third party will resolve the settlement disputes.
Alexis von Hoensbroech, CEO of WestJet, directly blamed a “violent US union” for the canceled flights.
“That makes a strike completely absurd because the reason you actually go on a strike is because you need to exert pressure at the bargaining table,” he said, according to the Associated Press.
“If there is no negotiating table it doesn’t make sense, there shouldn’t be a strike.”
However, employees have claimed that the strike is an attempt to force WestJet back into negotiations.
WestJet did not immediately respond to US Sun’s request for comment.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
