Canadian Labour Reporter

Expansion prompts recent union pushes have come to realizing the cam- paign. Currently, the employees' as- sociation serves as a makeshift, unofficial union — it dictates em- ployment terms and conditions much like a collective agreement would, though without any legal obligations. The nearly two-year long cam- paign came to a head in June when the association applied for certifi- cation to the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), saying it met the new 40 per cent member- ship threshold needed to hold the secret ballot vote. WestJet CEO Gregg Saretsky lauded the pilots' decision. "We are pleased that the major- ity of our pilots who voted have voted against union representa- tion," he said in a statement. "Our model of co-operation and employee representation through the WestJet Pilots' Asso- ciation has allowed for the contin- ued success of our pilots and our airline. "Despite the positive outcome, there is continued work that needs to take place to better un- derstand some of the issues for our pilot group and we can now turn our efforts to that goal." Keeping non-union status Historically, WestJet's case is unique because workers are stakeholders and owners too, as the airline boasts a lucrative share purchase plan for its near 10,000 staff. And because the company boasts a strong relationship with employees, the pressure is now on the human resources department to play keep-up and keep union- mongers at bay, said George Smith, an adjunct professor at Queen's University's School of Industrial Relations in Kingston, Ont., who has worked as chief management negotiator for Air Canada, CP Rail and CBC. "This is a wake-up call for man- agement," Smith said. "They are looked upon as an enlightened human resources employer, they have positive relationships with their pilots and other employees, they've built that into their brand as well as their corporate culture. But obviously some things got away from them." Smith said a failed unionization bid doesn't automatically sour the employer-employee relationship. Instead, the employer should take it as a renewed opportunity to maintain non-union status — especially in this case, where the vote was won only by a slim mar- gin. "The vote was close enough to realize this was a legitimate threat to make good on what they've been doing in the past, and to make sure the issues get dealt with within the context of the associa- tion that they already have," Smith said. Going forward, management should not become complacent and deal with employee issues in such a way that would render a union unnecessary, he added. Union defeat Despite priding itself on strong labour relations, WestJet's expan- sion has prompted recent union pushes, said Jason Foster, assis- tant professor of labour relations and human resources at Athabas- ca University in Alberta. "(WestJet) has a deeply in- grained culture that works against unionizing. They've intentionally and quite consciously developed their corporate culture to one that is an attempt to try and dampen the desire for unionization," Fos- ter explained. "This approach is meant to sort of head off at the pass any attempt or desire amongst workers to unionize by creating a culture that says you don't need a union." Coupled with the airline's size and recent expansion, organiz- ing efforts can prove challeng- ing. Foster cited shift work and a scattered labour force as major contributors to such a problem — whereas at a traditional union shop, all potential membership can be found in one place, such as the factory floor. Third time the charm? Pilots aren't the only WestJet workers gunning for a union. Al- most 3,000 of the airline's flight attendants are attempting certi- fication through their employee association, which is gathering union cards and preparing for its own secret ballot vote. Until the CIRB reveals the re- sults, Smith said the outcome of the pilots' vote is not likely to have a major impact, as they exist as a niche employee group. "Pilots are generally leaders in airline organizations; they're highly paid, they occupy very re- sponsible positions, but in a cer- tain sense, they're not traditional unionized employees — these aren't people arguing over a nickle an hour at the bargaining table," he said. Foster echoed the thought, adding that flight attendants would have very different griev- ances and concerns than their in- flight counterparts. "(Flight attendants) have their own context and circumstances," he said. "The failure of the pilots' ap- plication doesn't negatively af- fect the flight attendants, it just doesn't give them the boost they might have needed." 7 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2015 CANADIAN LABOUR REPORTER NEWS < from pg. 1 WestJet CEO Gregg Saretsky said he is pleased pilots turned down the union, but work needs to be done to better understand how the company deals with concerns raised by employees. Photo: Todd Korol (Reuters)

• Cover