Pilots vow go-slow over Jetstar plans
JETSTAR pilots are planning a month long go-slow they have dubbed ''a September to remember'' that could cause delays in protest at what they say is an attempt by the airline to undermine wages and conditions.
More than 100 pilots will meet on Monday to vent their anger over the employment arrangements proposed by the airline as part of its expansion into Asia and Europe.
This includes encouraging pilots to transfer to the airline's new Singapore-Melbourne route where - despite flying Australian-registered A330 aircraft into Australia - they will be employed on private contracts under Singapore laws.
Under the plan, Singapore and Vietnam-based pilots would also be transferred to Australia where they would not be employed under the Jetstar Australia employment agreement, but through a ''new Jetstar Group company'' that would only be required to pay the award rate.
''I think you'll see what might be called a distinct lack of enthusiasm,'' said one pilot, who asked not to be named.
''These are not guys who take this kind of action all the time - there is a lot of anger out there.''
A range of go-slow or work-to-rule measures are being considered by the pilots, including:
Refusing to work outside their scheduled hours to fill in for sick colleagues or to meet increased demand;
Refusing to take on more than a minimum load of fuel, so that if there is an in-flight delay as a result of weather or air traffic, flights will have to be diverted;
A go-slow on pre-flight checks.
''If the pilot feels he needs to read all of the pre-flight checks through twice he will do that,'' the pilot said.
''If a flight is delayed, he won't try to make up time in the air - it'll be steady as she goes.''
Airlines rely heavily on the goodwill of pilots to keep services running on time.
A go-slow by even a fifth of Jetstar's pilots would cause significant delays across the airline with the potential for delays across the broader Qantas-JetStar network.
Jetstar's head of corporate relations, Simon Westaway, refused to comment on the pilots' plans, saying that the airline ''does not respond to speculative commentary''.
He said that more than 70 Jetstar pilots had expressed an interest in working on the new Singapore to Melbourne route where pilots would be ''well remunerated'' on ''Singapore terms'' and ''enjoy the benefits of a Singapore basing, including their low tax environment''. He declined to comment on how much they would be paid.
The vice-president of the Pilots Association, Captain Richard Woodward, said Jetstar's pilot transfer program was an attempt to undercut union-negotiated wage agreements.