Wider agenda in union stand-off with Qantas
Wider agenda in union stand-off with Qantas
Negotiations with the unions have been under way for the best part of a year. The agreement with pilots expired late last year, the engineers early this year and the baggage handlers and catering staff agreements expired in June. Simmering discontent between both sides quickly boiled over with the unions refusing to back down on even frivolous claims and the company determined to give no quarter resulting in the authorised action.
But Qantas raised the stakes significantly with its plans to shift some of its operations offshore, particularly the new full service carrier in Asia. Along with the new carrier, it was announced that 1000 jobs would be lost in Australia, a deliberately provocative move during wage negotiations.
Had the move been portrayed as an expansion of the empire, rather than a brutal shift to lower costs and move jobs offshore, it may well have received a better reception from the workforce and, indeed, customers. But there are still serious doubts about whether RedQ or OneAsia or whatever it will be called will ever fly.
For a public company to announce such a monumental shift without having nailed down even vague details, is highly unusual. Not only is a brand name yet to be dreamed up, Qantas management have yet to figure out exactly where this new airline would be based. Singapore and Kuala Lumpur both have been mentioned. But months after the announcement, we are still flying blind, leading some to conclude that the entire strategy merely is a threat or, rather, an option if the company can't bring its workers to heel.
While Qantas's plan to establish a low-cost domestic carrier in Japan, in partnership with Japan Airlines, makes sense, the full service south-east Asian operator is fraught with risk. It takes years to turn a profit on any new airline. Jetstar Asia, based in Singapore, has only recently turned a profit after years of losses.
The unions have managed to strike at least one serious blow to the credibility of Qantas's hierarchy.
Despite the titanic quest to trim costs, Alan Joyce and most of his senior team members were awarded major lifts in salary. Odd timing to say the least. That's forced Joyce on the defensive. T
he company spin now is that his pay is 10 per cent less than the average paid at the ASX Top 50 companies. That's all well and good. But Qantas isn't in the top 50. It's ranked number 60. my bold