planemad2
23rd Mar 2006, 20:20
Qantas staff to strike in three cities
March 24, 2006 - 7:54AM
Qantas staff will take industrial action in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane over the airline's plans to send its maintenance work overseas.
About 450 workers will march to the airport terminals in each of the major cities to hold rallies and inform passengers of the airline's plans to slash jobs and send work to Asia and China.
Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) national secretary Doug Cameron said Qantas had broken its commitment to keeping heavy maintenance in Australia.
"On top of slashing hundreds of jobs and services they are now secretly sending planes to Asia for vital maintenance," Mr Cameron said in a statement.
"(Qantas) wants to introduce a cut price maintenance service in Australia and to send more and more work overseas."
Mr Cameron said the airline was tearing-down a maintenance service that had helped the airline to establish the best safety record in the world.
"It is blindly pursuing a cost-cutting agenda instead of investing in Australian workers," he said.
"Hundreds of workers in Sydney are to be sacked and others are facing major cuts in their wages and conditions."
Mr Cameron warned the airline was taking the first steps toward scrapping its maintenance services entirely.
"Everybody knows a world-class maintenance service means world-class safety and that is what workers are defending," he said.
The action is not intended to impact on the airline's flying schedule.
Qantas has said it is committed to keeping its heavy aircraft maintenance in Australia, despite arranging to send a Boeing 747-400 to Singapore for work next month.
March 24, 2006 - 7:54AM
Qantas staff will take industrial action in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane over the airline's plans to send its maintenance work overseas.
About 450 workers will march to the airport terminals in each of the major cities to hold rallies and inform passengers of the airline's plans to slash jobs and send work to Asia and China.
Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) national secretary Doug Cameron said Qantas had broken its commitment to keeping heavy maintenance in Australia.
"On top of slashing hundreds of jobs and services they are now secretly sending planes to Asia for vital maintenance," Mr Cameron said in a statement.
"(Qantas) wants to introduce a cut price maintenance service in Australia and to send more and more work overseas."
Mr Cameron said the airline was tearing-down a maintenance service that had helped the airline to establish the best safety record in the world.
"It is blindly pursuing a cost-cutting agenda instead of investing in Australian workers," he said.
"Hundreds of workers in Sydney are to be sacked and others are facing major cuts in their wages and conditions."
Mr Cameron warned the airline was taking the first steps toward scrapping its maintenance services entirely.
"Everybody knows a world-class maintenance service means world-class safety and that is what workers are defending," he said.
The action is not intended to impact on the airline's flying schedule.
Qantas has said it is committed to keeping its heavy aircraft maintenance in Australia, despite arranging to send a Boeing 747-400 to Singapore for work next month.