Originally Posted by fedsec
They could offer you 5 grades each and it would make no difference if you have no job security. Don't be sucked in.
That's the one thing you probably won't ever get, not from any kind of management except the most absolutely and utterly incompetent. I know you don't like it, none of us do, but we're competing on a big world stage. The only way to get job security is to be competitively cost effective.
My opinion on that is well known, and it cannot be achieved by QF restricting wages and conditions. Equally to prevent QF from having outsourcing as an option is not right either.
Think of it this way - how would all LAMEs like it if they had to buy Australian made cars? There are plenty of imports driving to and from site each day so it's not like QF if the only one facing international competition.
Ever bought a book off Amazon instead of your local bookshop? Software? DVDs? Clothes? Bought from EBAY? If so then your position is hypocritical, you want the benefits of competition without facing it yourself.
These are all forms of competition that many people use each and every day and it's wreaking havoc across the Australian retail scene. Only those smart enough to adapt and offer better value, perhaps through convenience, perhaps by local knowledge or whatever, will continue into the future.
For QF Engineering I see the solution as actually working together, and that takes both sides to come to the party. Scheduled turnarounds in less time allowing seats to be sold or perhaps even less aircraft to be utilised to cover route requirements (i.e. less "spare capacity" in the network to allow for planned aircraft downtime) is a major cost saving. Problem is the way both parties are fighting at the moment the argument is all about direct costs associated with labour. The indirect costs I mentioned are potentially far higher, couple that with every other indirect cost you can think of and the number gets big very quickly.
You'll probably want to tell me QF management don't want to negotiate in that way, and you may well be right. But if you're smart, and I know you are, then you and your team are going to have to not only lead QF to water but get them to drink. YOU and your guys need to show them the real and actual benefits of doign work here with hard numbers, not just the argument of "we're safe, we're the best, planes will crash" etc etc etc.
None of the people in QF management are stupid despite what many here like to think. They may not see the world the same way as you, they may not agree with what you are saying, but ultimately if they can do their job and improve profitability then they will. How you start that I'm not sure, I've always been on the side where I've been trying to get people to undertake programs to make the workplace more effective, I've always listened to my people and considered their opinions even if I eventually disagree with them and don't go down that path.
How you get that relationship back with QF I'm not certain, but I suggest that sticking to what you are currently defining as job security is unlikely to get you what you really want.