Qantas has reported that its flyers experienced no delays or cancellations today following industrial action by engineers during peak travel times in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. But more strikes are coming later this week.
In a statement this morning, a Qantas spokesperson said, “Our teams worked hard to put contingencies in place which meant there were no delays or cancellations to flights this morning as a result of the industrial action, despite incorrect claims from the unions”.
“Our teams continue to do a great job helping customers get to their destination safely, particularly over the busy school holiday period,” they said.
More strikes are planned for later this week, but Qantas remains confident of dealing with the situation.
“We have a number of contingency plans for the remainder of this week’s planed strike action and don’t expect it to impact customers,” they said.
Yesterday, a spokesperson said Qantas didn’t see any disruptions to its network last week as a result of the start of industrial action.
“Our teams have done a great job helping customers safely get to their destination over the busy weekend with school holidays and the footy finals,” they added.
Qantas says that across the work groups involved in the action, around 300 employees were on shift this morning.
Unions rally
[30 September 2024]
According to the Qantas Engineers’ Alliance, more than a thousand Qantas engineers, whose duties include the towing and marshalling of aircraft, were set to walk off the job this morning (between 7am-9am AEST).
The union said that strikes were “likely to have a significant and immediate impact on flights”.
“I know that there wouldn’t be a single engineer relishing the idea of delaying passengers,” AWU National Secretary Paul Farrow said.
“As a former aircraft engineer myself, I know there is real pride in getting people where they need to go safely. But management has backed them into a corner.”
But Qantas states that unions have unsustainable demands and that the carrier is committed to reaching a deal that includes pay increases and other benefits.
Strikes start
[27 September 2024]
Qantas engineers are set to strike nationwide over the next two weeks, starting today in Melbourne.
The industrial action follows years of alleged wage freezes, with the Qantas Engineers’ Alliance (AMWU, AWU, ETU) demanding a five per cent yearly pay rise and a 15 per cent first-year increase to offset lost income.
Engineers argue that their skills have been undervalued while the airline boasts record profits and executive bonuses.
The Qantas Engineers’ Alliance says the strikes are “highly likely” to impact flights across all major Australian airports, but couldn’t tell Karryon exactly what that will look like at this stage.
However, a Qantas spokesperson said the airline doesn’t believe customers will be affected.
“We’re putting contingencies in place and don’t currently expect this industrial action to have an impact on customers,” a statement said.
“We’ve held a series of meetings with the unions and made progress on a number of items. We want to reach an agreement that includes pay rises and lifestyle benefits for our people.”
According to Qantas, the employees taking part in this round of industrial action are part of the carrier’s Aircraft Maintenance Engineers (AMEs) teams, so around 1,100 of 2,500 engineers at the airline.
It says it has been notified of work stoppages at airports around Australia today, on Monday 30 September, Wednesday 2 October and Friday 4 October.
A Qantas spokesperson also told Karryon that there have been some flight cancellations this morning but they were due to weather and “completely unrelated” to the engineers’ strike.
“People are going to say enough”
[27 September 2024]
AWU National Secretary Paul Farrow said the union had little choice but to take action.
“Qantas engineers are dedicated to getting passengers where they need to go safely and on time,” he remarked.
“As a former aircraft engineer I know they never take industrial action lightly. On this occasion, their hand has been forced because Qantas management is refusing to countenance a fair deal.
“You can’t expect to announce billions in profits and executive bonuses and simultaneously tell the engineers who keep your planes safe to take less and less home to their families. At some point people are going to say enough.”
ETU National Secretary Michael Wright added, “Qantas has traditionally attracted the very best and brightest, and they are why it has the amazing safety record it has today”.
“Aircraft engineers are highly skilled and their services are in demand in a variety of sectors,” he stated.
“But if management insists on treating its engineers like garbage, then it’s pretty obvious to see what’s going to happen.
“Already we are seeing Qantas having to offshore maintenance because they can’t retain enough quality engineers in Australia.”
In August, the flying kangaroo reported an Underlying Profit Before Tax of $2.08 billion and a Statutory Profit After Tax of $1.25 billion.
