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Qantas has accused the Transport Workers Union (TWU) of “playing games with families” after the union cancelled planned strike action with less than 24 hours’ notice.
The airline says it had already cancelled 17 flights and rescheduled 29 others across Australia for October 7, and had put other contingency measures in place to mitigate the effects of the planned two hour work stoppage by baggage handlers. It said the cancellation of the strike came too late to revert back to the normal timetable, meaning travellers would still be affected.
“We apologise to all of our customers who still face delays tomorrow because of games from the Union,” Qantas Group Executive Government and Corporate Affairs Olivia Wirth said in a statement. “We would like to re-instate services but it’s just too late. You can’t just turn an airline on and off. The Transport Workers Union has waited until less than 24 hours before the planned strike to call it off so that passengers are still disrupted, the Qantas business been damaged but their members don’t lose any money from going on strike.”
Meanwhile, the Australian Licenced Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) is scheduled to hold a series of one hour stoppages over the next week.
