WestJet appeals to high court in legal action over anti-harassment promise
CALGARY — WestJet Airlines Ltd. is going to the Supreme Court of Canada in an attempt to have a proposed class-action lawsuit launched by a former flight attendant thrown out of court.
The airline lost efforts to scuttle the action in both the B.C. Supreme and Appeal courts, but documents asking for leave to appeal filed with the high court say the case raises several questions of national importance.
Mandalena Lewis worked for WestJet for eight years and alleges in her legal action that the employer broke its promise to provide a harassment-free workplace for women.
WestJet claims in its filing that the high court needs to decide if the Canadian Human Rights Commission and Tribunal have exclusive jurisdiction over the claims of sexual harassment in a non-unionized, federal company.