WestJet has been facing significant backlash online after a recent video of two passengers on a WestJet flight documenting the available legroom in the non-reclining seats went viral.
Amanda Scmidt, the daughter of the passengers in the video, told CBC that “if they’re selling a seat for a human, it should fit a human,” and described the seating as “inhumane”.
The changes in legroom are the result of a new seating configuration done by the airline that adds an extra row of seats on 43 Boeing 737s in a move that has been described as an effort to “keep costs low and offer affordable airfares.”
The new seat pitch — which is the distance from one point on a seat to the same point on the seat in front of it — on the newly configured WestJet planes range from 38 to 28 inches, depending on the row.
WestJet’s 28-inch seat pitch places the airline on par with some budget airlines such as Spirit, which operates in America. Though common in markets like Europe, this kind of pitch has yet to become common in Canada.
The industry standard for economy class seat pitches remains at 30-31 inches, while no other airline in Canada uses seating with a 28-inch seat pitch.
As has been noted in online discourse, Canada currently does not regulate airline seating, while airlines are not required to disclose the amount of legroom or seat pitch available on-board.
The move by WestJet to add an additional row follows a broader trend by the airline to cut costs. WestJet had previously announced plans to remove reclining seats on their flights, though online backlash pressured the airline into pausing that initiative.
Weeks prior to the viral video, WestJet executives and union members trialed the new seating arrangement and “acknowledged that the seating configuration would present challenges on longer trips and night flights due to the limited comfort and mobility.”
While safety concerns were raised about the more tightly packed aircraft configuration, WestJet noted that “all modifications were completed in accordance with Transport Canada’s rigorous airworthiness standards.”
However, concerns continue to be raised over whether the closely packed design would allow passengers the ability to leave their seats quickly in an emergency.
WestJet’s flight attendant Union, CUPE 8125, made use of the controversy by launching a campaign titled UltraExtraBasic, which is a play on WestJet’s additional lower tiered classes, Econo and UltraBasic.
The campaign states that: “WestJet has taken away ‘perks’ from their flights. You’re now left with no seat selection, no checked bags, no flexibility. But what you might not realize is that your flight attendants are stuck in their own hellish experience.”
CUPE 8125’s campaign iterates that flight attendants remain unpaid during boarding, safety checks and delays, amounting to thousands of unpaid hours of work, while also inviting readers to write a formal complaint to WestJet.
According to the UltraExtraBasic campaign, “it’s a race to the bottom and everyone loses, except the billionaires.”