iscover
The Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) has filed a Protected Action Ballot Order (PABO) for Qantas ground workers.
Around 650 staff members at Qantas Ground Services (QGS), who serve mostly Qantas Freight and QantasLink operations, will vote on whether to take industrial action over what the union has called “Joyce-era tactics to relentlessly pursue short-term profits over worker and passenger standards”.
This content is available exclusively to Australian Aviation members.
A monthly membership is only $5.99 or save with our annual plans.
- Australian Aviation quarterly print & digital magazines
- Access to In Focus reports every month on our website
- Unlimited access to all Australian Aviation digital content
- Access to the Australian Aviation app
- Australian Aviation quarterly print & digital magazines
- Access to In Focus reports every month on our website
- Access to our Behind the Lens photo galleries and other exclusive content
- Daily news updates via our email bulletin
- Unlimited access to all Australian Aviation digital content
- Access to the Australian Aviation app
- Australian Aviation quarterly print & digital magazines
- Access to In Focus reports every month on our website
- Access to our Behind the Lens photo galleries and other exclusive content
- Daily news updates via our email bulletin
“New management at Qantas has made all the right promises but is still employing the exact same tactics that saw Joyce shunted out in disgrace,” said TWU national secretary Michael Kaine.
“Over decades, billions of taxpayer dollars have been poured into this airline when times are difficult. But instead of the community seeing a return on its investment when times are good, they’ve seen standards for workers and passengers continue to be obliterated.
“When pay and conditions reach rock-bottom levels, safety suffers. We saw this deadly recipe last year when a Qantas Freight worker was horrifically killed in Sydney.
“Workers at QGS, and elsewhere across aviation, are saying enough is enough: it’s time for Qantas to invest in its workforce instead of continuing to trash jobs and safety.”
QGS is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qantas, which the union says was set up under former CEO Alan Joyce to “pay workers less than its ‘legacy’ workforce, under casual and part-time positions”.
According to the TWU, Qantas workers are now “scattered across 38 different subsidiaries and labour hire companies”, leading to a “revolving door in aviation, shocking safety concerns, and a dysfunctional aviation sector for the travelling public”.
“Recently TWU health and safety reps in NSW served Qantas with 14 provisional improvement notices over safety failings by management at Qantas Freight, where investigations are ongoing after a labour hire Qantas Freight worker was killed last year,” the union said.
“QGS workers are calling for job security, a fair pay rise after years of wage freezes have left them behind, and for the scattered work groups to be brought back together under one agreement.”
Kaine has urged the Federal Government to act, saying Australians “cannot trust companies like Qantas to act in the public interest”.
“It is now urgent that the Albanese government acts on its commitment to introduce an Aviation Coordination Council, to rein in Qantas’ disproportionate economic power and ensure aviation benefits the whole Australian public.”
Qantas is continuing to negotiate with the TWU, and says it has contingency plans in place to minimise impact to customers.
“There’s no immediate risk of industrial action from this workgroup. We’re committed to reaching an agreement that includes improved pay and conditions for our people while ensuring we have a sustainable business,” a spokesperson said.
The PABO is the first step in the process to take protected industrial action, with a minimum of two weeks before any such action could occur.
Want to see more stories from trusted news sources?
Make Australian Aviation a preferred news source on Google.
Click here to add Australian Aviation as a preferred news source.
