Interesting victory

An editorial in The Australian said: “The victory by Qantas in its protracted industrial dispute with the Transport Workers Union should be seen as a benchmark ruling in favour of the right of any company to run its operations as it sees fit, free from union bullying and intimidation, while paying proper regard to the financial viability of the business, the concerns of its employees and the duty it has to shareholders. ” But there was no sign of contrition at the TWU. Quite the opposite, in fact, with the union claiming the Fair Work decision as a victory.

FWA rejected the TWU’s demand for a 20 per cent cap on contract ground staff and its demand for non-permanent staff to be paid the same as fulltime.

It also lost its claim for a five per cent a year pay hike and its push to restrict overtime hours to permanent employees.

Instead, it got the three per cent most Qantas employees had agreed to and secured a clause that there would be no compulsory redundancies as a result of the use of outsourced part-time workers.

Over to Qantas, where corporate affairs spokeswoman Olivia Wirth said: “It’s clear that the Transport Workers Union’s demands were out of step with what is fair and reasonable for a union to demand of an employer.

“Importantly, Qantas is free to run our business as we see fit and not be dictated to by union officials who do not have the airline’s best interests at heart. ” The Australian editorial took a stronger tone: “At stake in the Qantas-TWU dispute, which forced the airline to ground its fleet last year, is whether a union should be able to use its industrial muscle to bend a company to its will . . .

“This ruling should provide some protection to other companies that find themselves subject to outrageous claims over matters that should properly be within the purview of management.

“In declaring that the union’s efforts to dictate staffing and contracting decisions would damage the airline’s ‘efficiency and productivity’ and ‘lead to immediate and significant increases’ in the company’s costs, FWA has made a sound judgment. ” It thundered: “The TWU, whose inflated rhetoric was matched by inflicting industrial chaos on the airline, had its outlandish claims and ridiculous assertions rejected by the tribunal.

“The union’s bid for contract staff to be limited and their wages and entitlements to match other employees was rejected. So was a demand for so-called job security clauses, as the tribunal said the union had failed to provide ‘clear and strong evidence of unfairness’ being meted out to existing employees.

“In addition, a five per cent annual pay increase was rejected and a three per cent wage increase was granted. While this dispute should have been resolved without needing arbitration, the tribunal noted that the action taken by both parties was not unreasonable.

“What is unreasonable, as the tribunal made clear, is that union militancy seeking to dictate decisions that are for management to determine will not be tolerated. Nor should it be. ” While there is little doubt the FWA determination is a shot across the bows of the TWU, a permanent solution is needed for industrial harmony.

The TWU and its members may not like what is happening at Qantas and thus to their workplace but Australia’s largest airline is only responding to the marketplace, liberalisation and globalisation.

And those dynamics are savage – Just ask former employees of Pan American, Trans World Airlines, Eastern Airlines, and closer to home, Ansett.

Certainly, Qantas has made some mistakes over the past 15 years – too many, in fact. But none were made by Alan Joyce.

If Qantas is to survive, the TWU, the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association and the Australian and International Pilots Association must work with the airline’s management on long-term solutions.

One thing is certain: if there is a repeat of the 12-month industrial chaos that Qantas passengers suffered through 2011, they will not be Qantas passengers any more. They will embrace Virgin Australia in droves.