Little disruption at Qantas, despite workers’ walkout
Qantas says it has planned to ensure industrial action won't disrupt its customers in peak season. Photo: Getty
Qantas passengers have so far escaped major disruption as workers walk off the job as part of an escalating industrial dispute.
More than 1000 engineers are staging walkouts on Monday as union members push for a 15 per cent pay rise in the first year of a new enterprise agreement, followed by 5 per cent increases in subsequent years.
The Qantas Engineers’ Alliance said flights between 7-9am at major airports in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth would “likely be affected”.
One tracking website showed four Qantas flights out of Sydney airport had been delayed by mid-morning. There were no delays out of Melbourne or Brisbane.
Qantas claimed there had been no delays or disruptions due to the industrial action.
Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union national secretary Steve Murphy said people couldn’t trust what Qantas said.
“Whenever you fly Qantas, you’re always waiting to see whether or not the flight has delayed, if it’s cancelled when you arrive, to make sure that your bag arrives,” he told ABC TV on Monday.
“The level of trust and damage to Qantas’ brand over the last couple of years really is going to take a quite an effort to turn around.”
The alliance comprises workers represented by the Australian Workers Union, Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and Electrical Trades Union.
About 1100 aircraft maintenance workers – about 45 per cent of the airline’s engineers – are covered by the agreement under negotiation.
Workers have been in negotiations since April, while their enterprise agreement expired at the end of June.
More strike action is planned in the next two weeks.
“Our preference is for Qantas to come back to the table,” Murphy said.
Strike action by Qantas engineers in Melbourne on Thursday threatened disruptions ahead of Saturday’s AFL grand final, but the airline also said customers weren’t affected.
Qantas has previously said it has contingencies for the next round of industrial action at the start of school holidays and ahead of the NRL grand final on Sunday, October 6.
The airline made a net profit of $1.25 billion in the 2023/24 financial year, down 28 per cent from the previous year.
-AAP
