Moderators: sky's the limit, sepia, Sulako, lilfssister, North Shore, I WAS Birddog
You're right! Spoken like a true Westjetter. Welcome aboard. Enjoy the coolaidTroubleshot Posted:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
don't bother posting anything about WestJet being in the wrong....christ haven't you heard WestJet can do no wrong....ever....in any situation!
HOW WESTJET FAILED TO TOPPLE THE 'EVIL EMPIRE'
As corporate espionage cases go, this one read like a thriller. It had an executive using a special code to access information, private investigators lifting shredded documents from the curb as they posed as garbage collectors, and chief executives who took name calling to new levels. All it took to solve Air Canada and WestJet's two-year-old lawsuit, OMAR EL AKKAD writes, was $15.5-million and a big apology
Dec. 19, 2003
Stephen Smith, chief executive officer of Air Canada subsidiary Zip, receives an anonymous phone call from someone claiming to be a WestJet employee. The caller said he had been shown detailed confidential information about Air Canada's load factors, the percentage of seats sold on a flight.
March 19, 2004
The accessing of Air Canada's information by WestJet comes to a sudden halt. This coincides with the departure of Michael Rodyniuk, Zip's director of sales and marketing, to take a job at WestJet. Air Canada executives contend Mr. Rodyniuk tipped off Mark Hill, WestJet's vice-president of strategic planning, that Air Canada knew what was going on. Mr. Hill complains of unauthorized workers rummaging through garbage outside his house; they turn out to be investigators hired by Air Canada.
April 6, 2004
Air Canada files a statement in the Ontario Superior Court claiming one of its former employees, Jeffrey Lafond, a financial analyst who moved on to WestJet, allowed his employee number and personal identification number to be used to gain access to Air Canada's employee website more than 240,000 times between May 15, 2003 and March 19, 2004. Much of WestJet's expansion strategy in recent years, Air Canada claims, has been based on information from that website. Air Canada also alerts the RCMP.
April 8, 2004
WestJet places Mark Hill and Jeffery Lafond on paid leave while the airline investigates Air Canada's allegations, but claims no wrongdoing.
July 14, 2004
Mark Hill resigns from WestJet.
Oct. 15, 2004
Jetsgo also files a lawsuit against WestJet, claiming the airline stole confidential information.
Oct. 27, 2004
WestJet announces it has been given court clearance to examine Air Canada's internal documents to ascertain whether there is any merit to the airline's spying allegations. WestJet co-founder Clive Beddoe fires back against Air Canada's $220-million lawsuit and Jetsgo's similar $50-million claim.
"We don't know if they have plucked these numbers out of the air in order to make dramatic headlines, but yet there's no basis for that, there's no substantiation of either number."
-- Clive Beddoe
Nov. 5, 2004
Air Canada alleges knowledge of the spying scandal reaches as high up as Clive Beddoe. Mr. Beddoe had earlier claimed he didn't know any spying was going on.
Nov. 10, 2004
Clive Beddoe reveals he offered to resign over the spying scandal, but WesJet's board of directors refused his resignation.
"[Air Canada doesn't] want a settlement. They want to keep giving us a black eye every opportunity they can." -- Clive Beddoe
"This lawsuit is about WestJet committing corporate espionage on a massive scale." -- Air Canada
Dec. 15, 2004
WestJet launches a $30-million lawsuit against Air Canada, including chairman Robert Milton, alleging he and two other executives conspired to win market share by predatory means.
"In essence, the plan was doe Air Canada to destroy WestJet and then have the Canadian market to itself, at which point Air Canada could return to its former pricing policies and seek to gain profitability."
-- WestJet statement of claim
Dec. 8, 2005
Air Canada expands on its allegations of spying, alleging WestJet code-named its espionage campaign the "007 Project" and referred to Air Canada as the "evil empire." Air Canada's court documents also claim WestJet gained access to secret information at CanJet Airlines of Halifax, too.
May 17, 2006
Clive Beddoe lashes out at Air Canada, claiming the airline is stalling, refusing to hand over certain corporate documents related to the $220-million lawsuit. Air Canada claims it is WestJet that is stalling by asking for vast quantities of documents.
"If someone was that intent on collecting all these incredible damages, then I think they would have found some documents by now."
-- Clive Beddoe
"[WestJet has] sought to deny that the spying caused damages or even more implausibly that the information that they took such pains to collect covertly was not in fact confidential." -- Air Canada spokesman Peter FitzpatrickMay 29, 2006
WestJet admits to spying on Air Canada in an out-of-court settlement. All legal proceedings are dropped. As part of the settlement, WestJet will pay Air Canada's investigation and litigation costs of $5.5-million. As well, WestJet has accepted an Air Canada request that it make a $10-million donation in the name of both airlines to children's charities across the country.
"This practice was undertaken with the knowledge and direction of the highest management levels of WestJet and was not halted until discovered by Air Canada," the release said. "This conduct was both unethical and unacceptable and WestJet accepts full responsibility for such misconduct. WestJet sincerely regrets having engaged in this practice and unreservedly apologizes to Air Canada and Mr. Robert Milton."
-- Joint statement from Air Canada and WestJet
|
Use AvCanada's information at your own risk!
We reserve the right to remove any messages that we deem unacceptable.
When you post a message, your IP is logged and may be provided to concerned parties where unethical or illegal
behavior is apparent.
All rights reserved.
