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QANTAS DECISION TO SLASH JOBS
A KICK IN THE TEETH
The decision by Qantas to slash jobs, when the company is earning record profits, is a kick in the teeth for the 38 000 men, women and families who work for the airline.
“On Monday, the Qantas Chief Financial Officer confirmed that the company was on target to achieve a record profit of $1.4 Billion AUD”, said Scott Connolly, Senior Airlines Official for the Transport Workers Union of Australia.
“It is now clear, they intend to pay for it with the jobs of the hard-working men and women who have made Qantas the great Australian company."
In response to higher fuel prices the company has increased ticket prices by 3.3% in the last two months. The company’s market share has increased by 2.2% in the last year due to record high load factors.
“When Qantas slugs customers to pay for higher fuel prices so they can protect their record profits, it’s un-Australian for them to then turn around, cut services and start firing the very people who have made Qantas the great Australian company it is today,” Mr. Connolly said.
“There was no consultation with employees. It seems more like an ambush designed as part of an industrial relations strategy than a genuine response to higher fuel prices
“Every single Qantas employee has the right to be feel let down by Qantas management.”
"The company must now make clear how many employees are going to lose out and from what sections of the business the jobs are going to be cut from."
“We’ll be talking to all our members about what this means for them and their family, and we’ll be identifying the most appropriate response.
One wife of a Qantas employee today spoke about what the Qantas decision meant for her and her family:
“With the price of everything going up, my family doesn’t need this insecurity. I just want to know whether my family will be one of those who have lost out thanks to Qantas management.”
“These are the same people who were happily going to accept $300 million last year when the company was going to be taken over last year.”
MEDIA INQUIRIES MICK PIERI (0418 269 348)
28 May 2008
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