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Skydiving instructors in eastern Australia have walked off the job, saying Skydive Australia’s owner, tourism giant Experience Co, has “repeatedly pushed wage proposals that would send employees backwards”.
Instructors at eight sites across Queensland, NSW, and Victoria took industrial action on Friday, saying negotiations for Experience Co’s first-ever enterprise agreement have stalled for nearly 10 months, and that the company would “trade away the industry’s reputation for profit”.
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“Some offers have included cuts of between -$20,000 and -$100,000 a year, while the latest proposal would slash the minimum annual wage for skydiving instructors from $57,000 to just $49,000, with earnings dependent on a very low ‘per jump’ piece-rate,” said the Australian Workers’ Union in a press release.
The union says the company is looking to scrap productivity bonuses implemented when instructors were brought in-house three years ago, pushing them back to wages that “barely crack $50,000 a year”.
According to Jonathan Cook, AWU national organiser, the company has delivered its strongest financial results since 2019, and the proposed pay cuts would undermine guests’ safety.
“Tandem skydiving instructors literally take people’s lives in their hands every time they go to work,” he said.
“If you’re not investing in your people, you’re undermining the trust that the industry has built up over years. You might want to give a once-in-a-lifetime gift this Christmas but would you want your mum strapped to an underpaid instructor?
“Experience Co’s message is clear: they want to turn these skilled professionals into gig workers, paid less, working more, and carrying the same enormous responsibility. Would you jump out of a plane with an instructor who can’t afford to feed their family, while the company pockets millions?”
Experience Co employs around 130 skydivers around the country, most of whom “have seen little to no base wage increases in decades”.
Cook said the fact that AWU members were 100 per cent in favour of the action shows they will “not accept a deal that cuts wages and jeopardises safety”.
“Our members love what they do, but passion doesn’t pay rent. This company is thriving, yet it wants its workforce to take massive pay cuts. The industry is going up, but wages and careers are going down – and that’s dangerous,” he said.
“The only agreement our members will endorse is one that protects wages, safety, and the future of skydiving as a profession.”
Experience Co has hit back at the union, saying it has “made six offers that would provide some of the best wages and conditions in the sector, including six figure salaries and job security”.
According to John O’Sullivan, chief executive of Experience Co, the AWU’s demands would “add massive costs that are simply not viable for the business”.
“Skydive Australia is effectively a small business that proudly employs mostly young people in regional Australia,” he said.
“These employment opportunities should be encouraged and fostered, not threatened by unreasonable and irresponsible actions by militant union bosses.
“We are at a loss to understand this action given the strength of our offers, and we call upon the union to return to the bargaining table with reasonable expectations so we can come to an agreement as quickly as possible.
“This hit from the union at a time when we are rebuilding together is reckless and unnecessary.”
Experience Co says it has taken steps to minimise impact on customers, with some rescheduling required; customers have been offered alternative bookings or full refunds.
