Do You Have What It Takes To Work for Canada’s Best Employer?

For years, there has been a growing shortage of pilots in Canada.

For the second year in a row, Randstad Canada has named WestJet the country’s most attractive employer. The Randstad Award rewards employer brand and best practices but unlike other similar awards, it’s the only one where the winners are chosen entirely by workers and job seekers.

“The employer brand not only allows an organization to attract the very best talent available, but also helps to retain the talent already in place,” says Jan Hein Bax, President of Randstad Canada. “Canadians are confident in their capabilities and take pride in the organizations that they work for. Cultivating an employer brand that makes both your current and prospective employees proud can truly be the difference that sets your company apart from your competitors.”

WestJet started in 1996 in Calgary with service to five Western Canadian cities. It now offers an average of 420 daily flights to select cities across North America, Mexico and the Caribbean and employs approximately 8,000 workers. WestJet employees enjoy fair market salaries, profit sharing, benefits and travel privileges, all of which play their own part in nurturing staff loyalty.

So, what does it take to work for Canada’s most attractive employer? What kind of skills and education do you need to apply for a position and build a long-lasting career?

There are a number of WestJet positions that contribute to its smooth running, from behind the scenes to inside the cockpit.

For years, there has been a growing shortage of pilots in Canada. Because of this, airlines are always on the lookout for licensed recruits who can do passenger and cargo flights – and WestJet is no exception.

With a Mechtronix Ascent® Turboprop Trainer™ and highly personalized instruction, Ottawa Aviation Services (OAS) helps students get their Recreational Pilot Permit (RPP) or Private Pilot’s License (PPL) – both of which are required before one can, with further instruction, experience and flight hours, get a Commercial Pilot’s License (CPL). OAS’s Integrated Airline Transport Pilot Course is designed to meet the Transport Canada standards for training pilots so they can operate as co-pilot on multi-crew, multi-engine airplanes in commercial air transportation.

Canadian Tourism College provides a wide variety of travel-related programs, including a Flight Attendant School. This diploma option offers full training and focuses on developing professional image and strengths as well as communication and problem-solving skills – all of which are needed to impress potential airline employers.

One of the main reasons why WestJet runs smoothly is because of the many people behind the scenes who make sure such things as luggage, packages, and urgent medical supplies get to where they’re going, on time and in top condition.  A diploma in Supply Chain & Logistics can land you a busy career in the management and logistics side of the airline industry.  Both triOS College and EPIC College of Technology offer diploma programs in Supply Chain and Logistics that prepare you for the multitude of tasks for which you’d be responsible, such as sourcing, purchasing, freight forwarding, quality assurance, warehousing, logistics and more.