TWU CALLS FOR MAXIMUM PENALTY ON QANTAS OVER ILLEGAL OUTSOURCING

At Federal Court hearings from today over the penalty Qantas must pay for illegally outsourcing over 1800 ground workers, the TWU is calling for the maximum payment of over $121 million to reflect the scale of its decision.

Qantas appealed the case all the way to the High Court which unanimously upheld the Federal Court’s finding it had breached the Fair Work Act by outsourcing the workers, preventing them from accessing industrial rights to collectively bargain and take protected industrial action.

In subsequent Federal Court compensation proceedings, Qantas made further arguments that the affected workers should receive no compensation at all.

The compensation process has now begun for the over 1800 illegally outsourced workers after Qantas last year agreed to fund a $120 million pool for economic loss and hurt and suffering.

TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine said:

“Not only was it an appalling act to get rid of a loyal workforce, it was the biggest case of illegal sackings in Australian corporate history. The penalty to Qantas must reflect this and send a message to every other company in Australia that you cannot sack your workers to prevent them from using their industrial rights.

“Over 1800 loyal Qantas workers will never get their jobs back after working at the airline for decades. Though they are now receiving compensation, it cannot make up for the last four gruelling years have seen relationship breakdowns, mental anguish and financial burden.

“Ground handling for Qantas is now performed by workers at companies like Swissport, where there are significant and alarming safety concerns, severe under-staffing and a revolving door of fed-up workers. This cannot be a business case for outsourcing and Qantas should not only pay the maximum legal penalty for its actions but commit to funding fair standards throughout its supply chain.

“We need to see Qantas held accountable to the fullest extent here. But not only that, we need to see a Safe and Secure Skies Commission in aviation to get rid of the dictatorial, profit-at-all-costs mindset that has plagued this industry and led to appalling outcomes for workers and passengers.”