Yesterday, Sunday, August 2, 2026, a flight attendants’ strike began at WestJet. It’s a strike no one expected—negotiations seemed to be going well, the airline is one we trust, and it’s vacation time.
Unfortunately, negotiations had not reached an agreement by the deadline they had set for themselves, and the strike began yesterday around 2 a.m. Hundreds of flights were canceled, and WestJet planes were grounded.
Today, Monday, August 3, 2026, negotiations between the airline’s flight attendants and WestJet have concluded, and the very brief strike has been declared over. Business is back to normal—in theory. In practice, it’s more complicated.
Micro-strike, snowball effect
The strike lasted only 24 hours, but it’s going to have a massive impact on the vacations of many Quebecers. Yesterday, hundreds of flights were canceled, and while some travelers who were supposed to leave were able to find alternative flights, others found themselves stranded as well.
And those who wanted to return to Quebec are forced to stay a few more days in the sun—but that comes at a cost.
Early this morning, a tentative agreement was reached between WestJet and its 4,700 flight attendants—this brings an end to the strike called by the employees and the “lockout” declared by the airline. WestJet planes will be flying again.
But, of course, service has been severely disrupted—during the peak vacation season, even a single day of flight cancellations is catastrophic. It could take several days for things to return to normal. For passengers traveling through Montreal Airport, it’s not yet clear how things will play out—but it looks like they’ll just have to be patient.
For now, we’re waiting for more information from the airline regarding the resumption of operations and the signing of the tentative agreement reached with the flight attendants.
