Thursday, March 28, 2024

WestJet laying off 1,700 pilots due to reduced air travel

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One of Canada’s largest airlines, WestJet, has confirmed layoffs of 1,700 of their pilots, just one week after they announced intentions to use the coming federal wage subsidy to hire back 6,400 workers who were previously let go.

Vice-president of flight operations, John Aaron, stated in an in-office memo that the layoffs will be rolled out in two stages: 700 people will be laid off on May 1st, and the other 1,000 effective June 1st.

The layoffs span across WestJet, WestJet Encore, and Swoop and are due to a ‘dramatic reduction’ in flights, says the Calgary-based airline.

This move was made in response to the cancellation of cross-border transportation due to coronavirus, as well as people being encouraged to only make essential trips outside their home.

The company reports that the above factors have grounded almost 75% of the WestJet fleet.

“Issuing layoffs, in response to this crisis, has always been a last resort for WestJet,” Lauren Stewart, a spokesman for the company said.

WestJet announced on March 24th that it would be laying off 6,900 workers, or almost half of its total staff.

Last week, a new announcement came forth that they were planning on re-hiring 6,400 of those workers once the changes to the government’s wage subsidy program were passed by parliament.

WestJet’s statement on re-hiring came hours after rival Air Canada said it plans to rehire all 16,500 workers it laid off in late March, as they can now access the same program.

Seanna Wainman
Seanna Wainmanhttps://www.victoriabuzz.com
Managing Editor at Victoria Buzz. Have a story idea? I'd love to hear from you! Email me at seanna@victoriabuzz.com

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