I can appreciate the situation from the perspective of the MAM casuals, but there are a few things you need to think about.
Qantas Long Haul Flight Attendants are fighting to be recognised for the fact that since 25th Feb 2002, they are working harder than ever before. One Flight Attendant was taken off 747-400’s (was 16, now 15 crew) and 767’s (was 8 crew, now 7). Meanwhile on a 747-400 the competition has far higher staffing levels - Malaysian Airlines has 22 crew, Cathay 18 & Singapore Airlines 17 crew. In the last EBA negotiations Qantas Management agreed in writing to recognise cabin crew’s contribution in directly making an annual saving of $40 million (this saving will only increase over time). Cabin crew are asking for a 7% pay rise – which is a portion of this saving and is hardly unreasonable. If you were asked to work harder, wouldn’t you want to be paid more to do it? It’s not about wanting more than the other Qantas unions, it’s about being compensated for a specific increase in our workload. Management are simply walking away from something they committed to less than a year ago, a time when all Unions were prepared to help Management by accepting a pay freeze.
Secondly, I am sure you’ll understand that if crew don’t take a stand now, the next time conditions are negotiated, Qantas Management won’t take crew seriously and undoubtedbly, working conditions will deteriorate dramatically.
Think about the fact that by accepting these 3 days of work YOU will adversely affect the impact of the Stop Work meeting. If this truly is your dream job, surely you will want to play your part in keeping it a job worth wanting now and in the future!
Simply, all cabin crew need to stand together, whether full time, casual or part time. Poaching each other’s jobs is un-Australian and it will weaken your working conditions when finally you are offered a full time role as a Flight Attendant (which I really hope will happen). Do you really think that your role in strike breaking will guarantee you a job? I seriously doubt it.
Talking about “our” passengers – think about how important it is to keep these passengers safe. Qantas Cabin Crew have 12 days of Emergency Procedures training to become certified on their aircraft – how can 1 day of training possibly be to the same standard? Qantas prides itself on being the safest airline in the world – can you truly say that 1 day of training maintains this standard? What happens if there’s an emergency? Will people trained for one day be prepared? I know if I was a passenger or a pilot on board an aircraft during the hours of the stop work, I would be very concerned if I knew that the cabin crew were not trained to Qantas’ usual standard!
For the ex-Ansett crew – I can only say you’ve experienced being burnt once, the Union stood by you then and fought for your entitlements (who do you think got your long service leave, annual leave and redundancy entitlements), now it’s your turn to repay the favour. We’re not only talking about what will happen next week – be aware that this could change your destiny and that of Qantas Cabin Crew forever.
If you really want to learn the FACTS about this issue, I urge you to visit the FAAA Long Haul website –
www.faaa.net - and PLEASE don’t accept 3 day’s work for a short term pay packet – it’s your future too!