Check in fee

[Wirraway]

Thurs "Courier Mail"

Check in fee
March 11th, 2004

GEOFF Dixon's discount Qantas offshoot Jetstar has apparently extended its low- cost philosophy to the human resources department where expenses are being pared back through the adoption of a particularly novel " user- pays" approach to recruitment.

Industry newsletter Travel Daily reports indignantly that budding ground and cabin crew looking for work with the new airline are being asked to foot the bill for investigations into their personal backgrounds.

One woman applying for a job in Brisbane apparently protested at being asked to bring along a money order for $49, made out to Qantas Airways, to cover the cost of a criminal history check !

What she wanted to know was whether Jetstar would be writing out a $49 refund cheque if she was unmasked as a crim, but failed to get a job.

More than 20,000 people have applied online for some 600 positions with Jetstar, including 1100 pilots and 2255 experienced cabin crew.

The shortlist may involve as many as 2500 people so applicants could collectively be asked to stump up between $30,000 and $122,500 to pay for background checks.

But according to Qantas, the new personal history background charge is now standard for all employment applications anywhere within the group. Union fears that Jetstar would become the airborne equivalent of a trojan horse appear to be gaining traction . . . sorry lift.

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[Aileron Roll]

You have got to be joking !, but you are probley not

Reminds me off the interview I was invited to to see if I might make the grade required to pay $100.00 per hour to log co pilot time....... much cheaper than an hour in a Cessna 152 you know !

[Pimp Daddy]

I paid for my criminal history check when I joined a QF regional 3 yrs ago, hardly something new.

Same deal I think, got sent the paperwork and forwarded on to QF with the money order. Although that was only after I had been given the position subject to the check.

In the end these people don't have to apply for the jobs.

[itchybum]

Goodonya Pimp Daddy, you did it so there can't be anything wrong with it. You're attitude only helps the employee-unfriendly process to prevail... which it will eventually anyway, I suppose.

[Pimp Daddy]

Goodonya Pimp Daddy, you did it so there can't be anything wrong with it

Was just pointing out that this ain't a new initiative.

And I work for a QF regional so I know what employee - unfriendliness is all about.

That's why I go to work, do my job to the best of my abilities with the facilities provided, go home and don't care.

Luckily the job actually pays so I can can continue exploring options outside aviation - because sure as hell this is my last job inside aviation, after 15 years it's time for a change.

[itchybum]

Well I guess it's a pretty sad state of affairs then, ain't it?

I thought the regionals were all happy places to be. And the satisfaction was inversely proportional to the airline size. I guess not always.

[GalleyHag]

I agree with Pimp Daddy this is nothing new. QF have been doing this for years and years with Cabin Crew. I think from memory when you get to stage 4 you are required to pay for your security check and medical and after this you can still get a no letter, but of course not compensated for the $$ you have outlayed on the application.

Also when I was working for a QF regional and applied to QF externally for a cabin crew position I had to go through the security check and medical again and pay the $$ even though I held an ASIC from a QF regional and QF medical held all my information, where is the sense in that.

[Blastoid]

Airservices are now charging $90 to sit the selection tests for ATC.

[Buster Hyman]

Hmmm...If I walk in with a Stat Dec, do I save $49?:rolleyes:

[proplever]

The money for the security check goes directly to the AFP, not into the airline's coffers. There's no profit turning here. And the Courier Mail? Geez, thats a reputable paper isn't it? NOT!!!

Why should the airline have to foot the bill for every Joe that turns up? Answer: they shouldn't.

Additionally, the cost of medicals / psych tests etc are not money making exercises either. Both are very expensive to the airline. Why should they come for free?

[missleadfoot]

This reminds me of the time I was given the forms for both QF and Australian the same time. I was able to get both medicals done in one hit, ie. one fee and the doctor was kind enough to send both medical reports, in separate envelopes to the same Qantas department but the ASIC check was different. Although I had technically applied to two different airlines, both sets of forms were eventually sent to the same department, just with different employer names, and I paid the fees for both. You have to if you want a job. It seemed crazy at the time but you just have to do it if you want the job. I have also discovered that these fee's are not tax deductable either. They are if you actually have the job, but in most cases you are not employed pending the outcome of the checks. Do other airlines operate this way??