A court filing says that WestJet has requested upwards of 60 permits for pilots from India and South Africa under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), which has caused the airline’s pilots to fight back against the program, which allows non-permanent residents to work in Canada for limited periods if it is determined that there are no Canadians or permanent residents available to satisfy market demand.
The Air Line Pilots Association is requesting that the federal court block approval of the decision, while the airline has asked the government to do an industry assessment to determine whether the need for temporary foreign workers is necessary through a labour market impact assessment (LMIA), which is required of every application under the temporary foreign worker program.
The request was made at a time of global flight crew shortages, but the union was not consulted, which has been met by a state of concern that the decision could have implications for “safety margins” while also undercutting any wage gains that were made.
