I wouldn't say it was a total waste. J* crew now respond to my 'G'day' in the terminal or waving as we taxi past 3 out of 5 times- up from 1 in 5 prior to the meetings.
Spoke to some union reps a while back. Some stuff going on behind the scenes that suggests that things are moving in the right direction. The 'shot across the bows' appears to have had some impact. I guess we'll know more in the next 2-3 years.