WestJet Pilots Set To Go On Strike On May 19, 2023

WestJet and their pilots have reached an agreement and will not be going on strike.

After a long negotiation, WestJet pilots submitted their strike notification to the government and WestJet, and can strike starting on May 19, 2023. This is by no means a guarantee that a strike will occur. But it’s now a real possibility.

If you have upcoming travel plans with WestJet and Swoop (it affects them too), how does this affect you, and what are you entitled to?

Here are your answers and things you can do.

Cancel your WestJet plans and book with someone else

The first and easiest thing you can do is simply cancel your plans with WestJet and Swoop ahead of time and book with someone else. No need to worry about how long any potential strike goes on – you’ll be set with your new airline.

Right now, as of May 16 2023, if your travel plans are between May 15 to May 21, WestJet is offering no fee changes – they’ll just charge you any fare difference. You can also cancel it and they’ll provide you with a refund. Just note this has to be done at least 2 hours before your scheduled departure.

This is slightly different than with Swoop, where you can only make changes for flights between May 19 to 21 right now.

You can stay up to date on WestJet’s cancellation timelines for the strike by heading here, and Swoop here.

Outside of their designated dates? Your normal fare rules will apply. And unfortunately, all but one WestJet fare (the highest business class) isn’t fully refundable. Most fares advertise that they are, but in reality all WestJet does is give you the equivalent cash for a future booking. They won’t actually refund your money at this time.

We’re also going out on a limb and assuming that if you’re going to do this and you’re simply getting a travel credit, you’re very unhappy with WestJet’s current situation. You likely won’t want to travel with them in the near future.

And of course, if you simply paid for WestJet’s basic fare, it’s not refundable at all.

The other item to this – if your travel plans are for shortly after the strike starts, you may be faced with a high cost to book yourself with a competitor. And really, you shouldn’t be on the hook to pay more because WestJet isn’t holding up their end of the deal.

Look, we never said this was a good option – not much of this is appealing unless you’re okay with a voucher for future travel. But it is an option.

What your rights are, and what WestJet and Swoop have to do

Realistically, besides not going on your trip at all, what else can you do? There are rules around this, and you are not going to like what you see.

However, one big point to note is that according to the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), a strike is not considered to be within the airline’s control.

Seems ridiculous? It sure seems like it. But if you don’t believe us, here’s the screenshot from the CTA’s page on types and categories of flight disruptions.

So if you had plans to get WestJet to pony up a decent amount of cash because you’re late or for a last minute cancellation, you won’t be getting that.

With that said, WestJet still has to get you where you’re going. And surprisingly, the rules are vastly different depending on whether you’re booked with WestJet or Swoop.

WestJet is considered a large airline, and Swoop a small one.

For WestJet, they’re required to book you on a flight operated by any airline. It has to be a reasonable route, from the same airport to your destination.

However, they have 48 hours to do so. They’re not obligated to get you on the next possible flight.

If you thought that was crazy and unreasonable, wait to see what happens if your booking is with Swoop. Swoop doesn’t have to book you on a competing airline. Their only obligation is to book you on a flight with an airline they have a commercial agreement with – and they don’t have any.

So, if Swoop decides to play by the rules set out for them, your only option is to cancel and make a new booking on your own. Obviously we’re hoping that won’t be the case with Swoop, but they have the power to not go out of their way to book something else for you.

If this seems crazy and you don’t believe us (we wouldn’t blame you if you did), here’s the screenshot and a link to the rules for you to read.

In summary – your options

For travellers with plans, you don’t have the best options. And ultimately, travellers are going to be the only loser in any strike. Here’s a summary of what you can do, depending on whether your travel plans are with WestJet or Swoop.

WestJet

WestJet is a little easier to manage. You can cancel your flight, or you can simply wait for WestJet to book you on another airline, knowing that it may be up to 48 hours later than you were supposed to leave.

Swoop

It’s harder with Swoop. They are not obligated to book you with another airline. So you can take a chance that Swoop may still do that, or cancel ahead of time and book somewhere else.

What can credit card travel insurance cover?

If you have credit card insurance, where does this fit into this equation? 2 types of insurance may come to mind – trip cancellation or interruption (depending on whether you’re already away from home or not) and flight delay.

Let’s start with cancellation/interruption. I mean, a strike has happened, and you may want to look into this seeing as how you’ll pay for your own way home, or to rebook yourself for your trip if you haven’t left.

This scenario isn’t covered. Taking a look at one insurance certificate (this is from the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card), here’s what non-medical scenarios are covered.

“The outright cancellation of Common Carrier travel is not considered a delay.” This is the key line here, which indicates a cancellation caused by a strike isn’t covered. There is a little vagueness with the wording “including the following” in paragraph b. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to try making a claim, but we don’t believe it’s likely to get approved.

Flight delay, on the other hand, can help you out if you’re delayed more than 4 hours (this is typical, but can vary based on the card).

Here’s the eligibility criteria for the same card.

Bingo. Here’s your ticket to getting some costs back while you wait for a flight. Just note that most credit cards will only cover $500 worth of expenses with this insurance.

If your credit card has this coverage, here’s where you can learn more about making a flight delay claim, and a list of credit cards that have it if you’re not sure if yours does or not.

Your thoughts on the potential WestJet pilot strike

Hopefully, we’ve armed you with knowledge regarding your options if WestJet and Swoop pilots go on strike.

If this news affects you – what are your plans? What do you think you’ll do?

Let us know in the comments below.