The WestJet Cares Initiative Bringing Awareness to Mental Health Across Canada
Today, WestJet is proud to launch a brand-new project called the WestJet Cares Initiative. This initiative is designed to bring awareness to the importance of our mental health. On November 7th, 2020, our flagship Elevation Lounge became open to travellers at the Calgary International Airport, to help serve all their needs before their flight. In conjunction with the WestJet Cares Initiative, our lounge will now be open to all travellers free of charge, so that all travellers will have the opportunity to relax and destress before a flight. As the COVID-19 pandemic has affected us all, our mental health has also taken a toll during these tough times.
With WestJetters working around the clock, 24/7 to serve all of your needs, it is important that their needs are also looked after. The WestJet Cares Initiative will allow for all WestJet employees to have access to a wide variety of mental health services, including counselling, therapy and more. Employees will have access to these services at any time, day or night, no matter where they are. The well-being of WestJetters is vital to making sure that we bring top-notch customer service to our guests at all times. As many mental health services and organizations have been dealing with more and more people as the pandemic has gone, there are staffing shortages and funding problems for these organizations right across Canada.
Therefore, WestJet is pleased to announce that a portion from our revenue each week will be donated to the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) to support them in reducing the staff and funding shortages during the pandemic. The WestJet Executive Team will also be donating a portion of their salary to the CMHA or a mental health organization of their choice. It is important to note that prices for flights will not go up. WestJet will be donating a portion of the revenue from a plane ticket to the CMHA, as a gesture of good will to help those struggling, and our service will not decrease as a result. Guests will also have the option of donating whenever they make a purchase on www.westjet.com . We will also regularly be making posts on a weekly basis, on our blog and social media sites, to highlight WestJetters and customers dealing with mental health, who are willing to share their stories. We will also give weekly updates into how much WestJet is donating to the CMHA, through our revenue and through customer led donations. To learn more about what the CMHA does, please visit Home – CMHA National for more information. The Government of Canada also has webpage that linking a number of resources to help Canadians struggling with mental health issues during the pandemic, and more can be found at COVID-19 and mental health resources – Canada.ca
Through these efforts, we hope that Canadians will rally to help those with mental health issues, and by showing your support, lives can be saved. WestJet is proud to be one of the first major Canadian organizations to take this bold step forward to helping Canadians with mental health issues and the organizations that provide life-saving services to thousands of Canadians each day.
To learn more about the WestJet Cares Initiative, please contact me, Adam Berls, Vice President of Communications, Chairman of the WestJet Cares Initiative at aberls@westjet.com