Up to 3,800 Qantas baggage handlers, ground staff, catering, freight and other transport employees will go on strike for four hours from Tuesday, September 20.
In a statement, Qantas said other bans imposed by the Transport Workers Union could impact flights for a 48-hour period.
A Qantas spokeswoman said the union is “holding passengers to ransom as it seeks pay rises and attempts to place restrictions on Qantas. In essence, it is trying to run Qantas.â€
Three Qantas unions, the pilots’ union, the licensed aircraft maintenance engineers’ union and the TWU are all currently taking some form of industrial action over issues covering pay, perks and conditions. 




“The TWU is demanding significant pay increases and new restrictions on labour flexibility which would make Qantas less competitive and prevent us from responding to volatility in the aviation industry,†said the Qantas spokeswoman.
Qantas said the TWU had negotiated a new deal with Virgin that was 12 percent lower than Qantas rates and included a wage freeze and a lower pay scale for new starters.
“The union is giving Virgin a competitive advantage over Qantas by agreeing to Virgin paying its staff significantly less than Qantas, and not imposing site rates,†the airline said.
By Ian Jarrett
