The federal government shouldn’t interfere in a prospective work stoppage at WestJet because it would undermine negotiations between the airliner and its flight attendants, say the opposition Conservatives.

Kyle Seeback, the party’s labour critic, said WestJet must end its policy of refusing to pay flight attendants for work done prior to takeoff and that will only happen if they are forced to sit down at the bargaining table.

He said that was the case for Air Canada flight attendants, who pressured the airliner to negotiate a new deal last fall after defying an order from Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu to end their strike.

“I’d like them to let the collective bargaining process work its way out, and not to intervene early like they did with the Air Canada flight attendants, because the big issue here is unpaid work, and flight attendants provide a lot of unpaid hours of work,” Seeback said in an interview on Wednesday.

“The Air Canada flight attendants were able to get that deal but only when they defied the order of Minister Hajdu ordering them back to work under a contract that forced them to work for free, so then to actually ignore that order, and put the pressure on Air Canada to get that kind of an agreement.”

Around 4,440 members of CUPE’s WestJet component could walk off the job as soon as Aug. 2 after members voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike mandate, citing demands to end unpaid work. The airliner could also order a lockout that would have the same effect of grounding flights.

Hajdu’s office said in a statement that it expects the parties to “come to an agreement at the bargaining table,” with federal mediators helping to facilitate talks.

“The federal government will always maintain that the strongest deals happen at the table. Canadians are relying on WestJet and CUPE to reach a deal,” the statement read.

Hajdu assigned a special mediator for the dispute earlier this month, and the minister has already met with CUPE and WestJet.

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Seeback’s comments represent the latest pivot by the Conservatives on labour issues since Pierre Poilievre became leader in 2022.

The centre-right party has historically supported government intervention, but has become much friendlier to unions under Poilievre’s leadership, including helping to pass legislation banning the use of replacement workers in federally-regulated sectors.

During several recent disputes, Poilievre has either explicitly voiced support for the workers or refused to join calls from the business community for the government to intervene.

This has differed from the Liberals, who have increasingly resorted to using a little known section of Canada Labour Code to end stoppages, including last year’s strike by Air Canada flight attendants.

Section 107 of that law gives the government the broad power to make any order to maintain industrial peace, but before 2024, it was never used to break strikes. Governments would typically need to introduce back-to-work legislation if they hoped to end a labour dispute.

Several unions are challenging the use of the section in court, and the government is holding consultations on potential changes to the law. Hajdu has said she’s open to creating “guardrails” to guide the use of s. 107.

Seeback said the problem isn’t the section itself, but instead how the government has “weaponized” it, noting that it’s been used around a dozen times over the past 18 months.

“And every time they do it, they take away a worker’s right to strike and fight for better wages and better working conditions, which we support, given how expensive and difficult it is to make ends meet these days,” he said, adding that he has “no confidence” in Hajdu’s handling of the dispute at WestJet.

“This minister has bungled this so many times.”