Qantas: Unions trying to kill us slowly

Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce, explaining the airline’s decision to ground its entire fleet in response to protracted union industrial action, said, “A crisis is unfolding within Qantas”.

Joyce said the leadership of three unions were sticking by impossible claims that were not just to do with pay, “but also to do with unions trying to dictate how we run our business”.

All Qantas flights domestic and international have been grounded with immediate effect.

“The pilots’ union wants to force us to pay Jetstar pilots on codeshare flights the same high rates that they get at Qantas,” Joyce said.

“This would set a wages precedent that would soon put an end to Jetstar and slash low-cost travel in Australia.

“Our only alternative would be to remove Qantas codesharing from Jetstar which would have the effect of making some key Qantas routes uneconomic.

“The licensed engineers want to bind Qantas maintenance to the past; to thumb their nose at world’s best-practice regulations, including those endorsed by Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority; and continue with outdated work practices on new generation aircraft.”

Joyce said these were “impossible demands”.

“We cannot agree to them because they could ultimately put the Qantas Group at risk.

“The second thing that makes these unions different is that they are running utterly destructive industrial campaigns against Qantas and our customers, hurting all our employees and undermining Australian business.”

Joyce said the unions’ industrial campaigns were designed to scare away customers.

“It has become impossible for Qantas to serve our third-party maintenance clients.

“They are trashing our strategy and our brand.

“They are deliberately destabilising the company.

“And there is no end in sight.

“Yesterday two unions declared their intention to escalate industrial action further and over an extended period.

“As one said earlier, they want: ‘to bake Qantas slowly’.

“The pilots’ union has also said they are considering escalating their industrial campaign.

“They talk about job security, but the unions are on a path that would diminish the job security of their own members.

“Customers are now fleeing from us,” Joyce said.

“Key high value domestic bookings on (Australian) east coast routes are down by 25% on the same period last year.

“That’s the most lucrative part of our flying business and it is bleeding badly.

“International bookings have also fallen, with November bookings nearly 10% down on where we expected them to be – when Qantas International is already making significant losses.

“Our customer research shows an alarming increase in people who intend NOT to fly with Qantas.

“In our domestic business that number has surged from a normal 5% to 20%,” Joyce added.

“The intention not to fly with Qantas internationally has surged to nearly 30%.

“Virgin Australia is the main beneficiary of this campaign and has announced capacity increases.

“The great irony is that it pays less, is less unionised and does its heavy maintenance offshore.

“Yet there is no union pressure on Virgin.

“This is a crisis for Qantas.

“If this action continues as the unions have promised, we will have no choice but to close down Qantas part by part.

“It goes without saying that this would have very grave consequences for jobs.

“Killing Qantas slowly would be a tragedy for Qantas and our employees.

“But it would also have a terrible domino effect right across Australia, affecting businesses large and small, tourism, freight and families.

“We have got to bring this to an end.

“So I have no option but to force the issue.

“In response to the unions’ industrial action, I announce that under the provisions of the Fair Work Act Qantas will lock out all those employees who will be covered by the agreements currently being negotiated with the ALAEA, the TWU and AIPA. I have informed the Government of this.

“The only exception to this is that no employee working overseas will be locked out and all staff overseas will continue to be paid.”

Joyce said Qantas had no option but to ground its fleet immediately.”

“This is a very tense environment.

“Individual reactions to this lock-out decision may be unpredictable.”

Joyce said this course of action had been forced upon Qantas by the “extreme and damaging course chosen by the leaders of three unions”.

“It is now over to them. The ball is in their court.

“They must decide just how badly they want to hurt Qantas, their members, our other employees, and the travelling public of Australia in pursuit of their destructive aims.”

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