The takeover of WestJet by Toronto-based Onex Corp. took another step forward this week when Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau approved the deal. This is really no surprise. The federal government rarely stops corporate takeovers.

That said, there’s an interesting detail in the announcement that caught our eye.

When the Onex takeover was announced on May 13, much was made of the fact that the $31-a-share offer was a 67 per cent premium to WestJet’s share price at the time. With the Garneau announcement, it was revealed that Onex initially offered $35.75 a share, but they cut the price due to uncertainty about the future of the new Boeing 737 Max.

In other words, they slashed their offer by $4.75 a share, or 13.3 per cent, because of the 737 Max – meaning you’ll get less money than you would have otherwise.

It also shows that Onex, despite initial promises, is willing and able to change its mind when it hits a roadblock.
We’ve seen this before.

When Onex bough Celestica, IBM's manufacturing division, in 1986, it started out by putting more money into the company. It looked good for the workers, at least at first. Then the dot-com bubble burst and everything changed very quickly. Onex began cutting hard and fast, with 28,000 jobs cut or contracted out to low-cost providers.

The Celestica example shows that despite initial promises about better times ahead for workers, Onex is not shy about protecting its own interests first. It is a corporation, after all, and its first job is to protect the interest of shareholders. Not workers.

Onex will take care of itself, you can count on that. Whatever the challenges ahead, from continuing problems with the new 737 Max to ongoing turmoil in the airline industry, we have seen that Onex will protect itself.

In times such as these, you need someone in your corner. This isn’t about stopping Onex from behaving like a corporation. This is about making sure that you have a real voice when changes come. Flight attendants, pilots and dispatchers have joined unions and already have such a voice.

Frontline airport workers need a voice in the workplace, as well. Sign a card, and encourage your co-workers to sign a card, and gain that voice.

If you have any questions or need a Unifor card for yourself or a co-worker, please contact one of your organizers.

Ontario
Billy O'Neill, Unifor
[email protected] | 416-605-1443

Quebec
Ada Zampini, Unifor
[email protected] | 514-701-6227

Prairies
Bruce Fafard, Unifor
[email protected] | 587-341-0945

British Columbia
Simon Lau, Unifor
[email protected] | 778-928-9630

Atlantic
Patrick Murray, Unifor
[email protected] | 506-850-7996