Greetings WestJet YYZ from Unifor

Unifor has received our certification from the Canada Industrial Relations Board as your official bargaining unit representation after most WestJetters signed union membership cards in YYZ.

Upon receiving the certification, we sent a request to your employer for your complete contact information as required by law.

Today's email, dated August 17, 2022, will mark the first communication to the entire bargaining unit. 

The Labour Board certification in Toronto with Unifor covers the following work groups.

Airport Learning Coordinator
Connection Lead
Coord - Irregular Operations
Coordinator - Daily Duty
Coordinator - Workforce
Coordinator IROP
CSA - Baggage
Customer Service Agent
Guest Service Lead
Guest Service Lead - Baggage
Operations Lead

***If you work at WestJet Pearson airport without union representation and are not listed above and would like to be represented by Unifor, don't hesitate to contact us to discuss representation.

National Staff Representation and Membership Meetings

Unifor has assigned Leslie Dias, Director, Airlines Sector at Unifor and Frances Galambosy, Servicing Department, as your National Staff representatives. In addition, you will be supported by a team of folks who are determined to help you get familiar with all Unifor has to provide you. In the coming weeks, we will hold a General Membership meeting to introduce you to Unifor and answer any questions you may have.

Nominations & Elections for Bargaining Committee

As we transition YYZ Westjetters into your local, we will start with nominations for the bargaining committee elections.

Your bargaining committee will consist of three members elected from YYZ. Your bargaining committee will work with your local membership and Unifor National Representative to achieve a collective agreement with your employer.

We will conduct the bargaining committee elections with an electronic vote sent out via email.

The Bargaining Committee Election nomination period will open today, Wednesday, August 17, 2022,  and remain open until  Saturday, 18:00 EDT, August 20, 2022.

All nominations must be received by this time, and anyone wishing to put their name forward can email me directly at [email protected]  and indicate that you want to stand for election for the bargaining committee. I will acknowledge receipt of all nominations with a reply.

Workplace Union Representation

WestJetters working at Toronto Pearson Airport represented by Unifor will join WestJetters in Calgary and Vancouver as members of Unifor Local 531.

Unifor has been in regular contact with WestJet Labour Relations and looks forward to working with your employer to ensure your workplace rights are respected. Unifor has raised your concern about attending discipline meetings with the employer without union representation. Until we have a collective agreement in place for YYZ that determines the process around discipline meetings and union representation, we have reached an agreement on the process.

The agreed-upon solution will allow us to utilize our elected bargaining committee members to support workers during these meetings. In addition, if any meeting deals with termination, a Unifor staff member will be present at that meeting.

Billy O’Neill
Unifor National Representative Organizing
416.605.1443
[email protected]

Lucy Alessio
Unifor National Coordinator Organizing
416.998.3189
[email protected]