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NEWSFLASH: Qantas grounds entire fleet
Qantas has grounded its entire domestic and international fleets indefinitely.
And it will lock out all its employees currently in dispute with the Australian carrier.
The lock out will begin at 8pm AEDT on Monday but the Qantas fleet -“for precautionary reasons”, the airline said – was grounded from 5pm Australian Eastern Standard time on Saturday, October 29.
Qantas will lock out all employees who will be covered by the industrial agreements currently being negotiated with the Australian Licenced Engineers Union (ALAEA), the Transport Workers Union (TWU) and the Australian and International Pilots Union (AIPA).
The airline said this step is being taken under the provisions of the Fair Work Act in response to industrial action taken by these unions.
Aircraft currently in the air would complete the sectors they are operating.
“However, there will be no further Qantas domestic departures or international departures anywhere in the world. This will have an estimated financial impact on Qantas of $20 million per day,” the airline said in a statement.
Qantas said the lockout would continue until the ALAEA, the TWU and AIPA “drop the extreme demands that have made it impossible for agreements to be reached”.
Jetstar flights, QantasLink flights and Qantas flights across the Tasman operated by Jetconnect will continue.
Customers booked on Qantas flights should not go to the airport until further notice, the airline said.
“A full refund will be available to any customer who chooses to cancel their flight because it has been directly affected by the grounding of the fleet. Full rebooking flexibility will be available to customers who wish to defer their travel.
“Assistance with accommodation and alternative flights, as well as other support, will be offered to customers who are mid-journey,” Qantas said.
Customers have been advised to monitor qantas.com for the latest updates. The latest information will also be posted on Qantas’ Twitter and Facebook accounts.
by Ian Jarrett
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