In The News for May 18 : WestJet begins flight cancellations ahead of strike deadline

The federal labour minister and the government’s head mediator as well as WestJet’s CEO and the pilots’ union leaders have all descended on a hotel near Toronto’s Pearson airport to work toward a deal.

WestJet issued a statement early Thursday saying it has begun cancelling flights in preparation for the job action.

The statement reads that the WestJet Group is parking the majority of its 737 and 787 fleet in a “measured, phased and safe approach,” given that a tentative agreement has not yet been reached. The airline says WestJet Encore, WestJet Link as well as limited 737 flights will continue to operate during this time.

WestJet chief executive Alexis von Hoensbroech says the union’s demands are extreme, while the travel plans of thousands of Canadians hang in limbo ahead of the May long weekend.

Bernard Lewall, who heads the union’s WestJet contingent, says the workers’ issues revolve around pay, job security and scheduling, with pilots earning roughly half of what some of their U.S. counterparts make.

With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28 per cent of Canada’s domestic market, while Air Canada runs 47 per cent, according to flight data firm Cirium.

The airline is advising travellers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport, and to visit WestJet’s Guest Updates page or Swoop’s information hub for more information regarding flight status and travel changes.

—

Also this …

Police officers, dignitaries, family and friends will pay tribute to Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Eric Mueller Thursday at the 10th funeral for a police officer killed on the job in Canada in the last eight months.

Last week, Mueller and two other officers were shot after they approached a house at 2 a.m. in the small town of Bourget, outside of Ottawa, after neighbours complained about the sound of gunshots.

Mueller died later that day in an Ottawa hospital, while the other two officers survived with injuries. One of them remains in serious but stable condition.

The OPP expects thousands of people to line highway overpasses to pay their respects as Mueller’s body is transported from a funeral home in the nearby community of Rockland to the West End of Ottawa, where he will be celebrated and mourned at a ceremony in the Canadian Tire Centre.

OPP officers and other police service members plan to march from a nearby detachment to the arena to honour the funeral procession as it passes by.

Mueller is the 10th police officer to be killed on the job in Canada since September 2022, and the fifth to be fatally shot in Ontario during the same time period.

The funeral service is expected to be closed to the public, but will be streamed live online.

The OPP has also arranged the play the service live at a community centre in Bourget, where Mueller was killed, and plans to set out a book of condolences for local residents to sign.

—

And this too …

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has landed in Hiroshima, Japan for the G7 Leaders’ Summit this afternoon.

The prime minister concluded his first official visit to South Korea on Thursday by establishing agreements on the supply chain of critical minerals – used for electric vehicles – and youth mobility.

As he meets with other G7 leaders between May 19 and 21, Trudeau is expected to push for increased co-operation on global and economic security to guard against geopolitical instability and the threat of climate change.

All eyes will be on how G7 countries, however, choose to address the threat of China specifically.

The meeting between G7 countries comes amid rising tensions with China in the region and an ongoing war in Ukraine, both of which are expected to be focuses of the summit.

During a joint news conference with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Trudeau said China is an important economic partner but that both countries need to be “clear-eyed” on when to co-operate with China.

—

What we are watching in the U.S. …

North America’s existential debate about the virtues and dangers of oil and gas pipelines faces a critical test today in Wisconsin.

That’s where a district court judge will hear arguments about whether or not to shut down Line 5, a critical cross-border energy conduit between Canada and the U.S.

The Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa says spring flooding has rendered the risk of a breach on its northern Wisconsin territory too great to ignore.

Alberta-based Enbridge Inc., the pipeline’s owner, says the band is overstating the risk and preventing the company from taking protective measures.

Today’s hearing will include lawyers from the state of Michigan, which has been trying in its own courts to shut down Line 5 since 2019.

It’s unclear how long the hearings will last or how quickly district court Judge William Conley will rule on the band’s request for an order to shut the pipeline down.

The band, which argues that Enbridge’s right to operate on its territory has long since expired, fears an imminent disaster after spring floods along the Bad River it says have undermined the terrain around the line.

For its part, Enbridge insists those claims of an emergency are overblown — and that shutting down the pipeline would be too drastic a remedy.

—

What we are watching in the rest of the world …

JERUSALEM _ Israel deployed over 2,000 police on Thursday for a march by flag-waving Jewish nationalists through the main Palestinian thoroughfare in Jerusalem’s Old City, a contentious event that comes as tensions are already running high.

Authorities say the beefed up security is a determined effort to ensure the march passes without violence.

Police have decided to allow the thousands of marchers to take the traditional route through the Old City’s Damascus Gate _ despite an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence over the past year and heavy fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza last week.

Early Thursday, hundreds of Jews were ascending to a sensitive Jerusalem site holy to both Jews and Muslims as part of the day’s activities, visits the Palestinians view as provocative. Among them was at least one Israeli Cabinet minister from the country’s right-wing government, according to Jewish activists leading the visits.

While Israeli officials describe the march as a festive parade, it has been marred by anti-Arab racist chants and violence toward local Palestinians by some of the marchers. Two years ago, it helped spark an 11-day war between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, and the Hamas militant group has urged Palestinians to confront the parade this year.

The march marks “Jerusalem Day,” which celebrates Israel’s capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its eternal capital, but its annexation of the eastern sector, home to the city’s most important holy sites, is not internationally recognized. The Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as capital of their future state.

Each year, thousands of Israeli nationalists participate in the march, waving blue and white Israeli flags and singing songs. But in some cases, protesters chant anti-Arab slogans as they pass by Palestinian onlookers and businesses.

On Wednesday, Gaza’s ruling Hamas militant group called on Palestinians to oppose the parade.

“We ask the people of Jerusalem to mobilize the masses to confront the march of the flags in Jerusalem tomorrow,” said Mushir al-Masri, a Hamas official in Gaza.

Hamas urged Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and inside Israel to “clash with the occupation.” It also said it would hold a demonstration, with people waving Palestinian flags along Gaza’s heavily fortified frontier with Israel.

—

On this day in 1980 …

The Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state erupted. The blast left 57 people dead, took 400 metres off the top of the mountain and blew an ash cloud around the world. Nearly 600 kilometres of forest was blown over — or killed and left standing.

—

In entertainment …

Canadian trivia phenom Mattea Roach has made it to the semifinals of “Jeopardy Masters,” a spinoff of the TV game show that made them famous.

The Toronto-based writer and podcaster came in third in their game on tonight’s show but still managed to land a spot in the next round, which begins Monday.

The tournament pit six recent super-champions against each other, including Roach, James Holzhauer and Amy Schneider.

A different combination of competitors plays two “high-stakes games” in each hour-long episode.

Roach entered tonight’s episode ranked third of the six, with Holzhauer in the lead.

The final episode of the tournament airs next Wednesday on CTV2.

—

Did you see this?

In an era inundated with scams involving mysterious princes or easy fortunes — if you just hand over a few bucks in advance — you’re probably right to be wary of anyone offering free money.

But Sherry MacLennan and Lindsey Moore really might have some cash for you, British Columbians. Maybe even millions.

The pair are part of a team of six running BC Unclaimed, recently rebranded from the BC Unclaimed Property Society.

Over the last 20 years, the organization has operated under a government mandate to reunite British Columbians with funds abandoned or forgotten in old bank accounts, with government departments or in the form of unclaimed court payments.

While the average payout is usually a few hundred dollars, later this month the society expects to finish the paperwork and hand over a record $1.98 million that the claimant did not previously know they owned.

“Every year we advertise, trying to get our name out there so that people know that this service does exist in British Columbia, and that our letters (are) not just some sort of phishing scam trying to get your identification,” said Moore, a co-ordinator with the society.

“We really do hold your money if you’ve got a letter from us.”

British Columbia is one of four jurisdictions in Canada that have programs to help people find unclaimed money.

In B.C., institutions like banks, credit unions, courts and government bodies are required to hand over funds if they can’t find the rightful owner after a set period of time.

It’s then up to the society’s team to try to track down the owners, with $190 million currently unclaimed in the province.

—

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2023.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

In The News for May 18 : WestJet begins flight cancellations ahead of strike deadline

More Local News