Qantas Airlines, Australia’s flag carrier and largest airline, will need to deal with a pilot strike for better pay while the company has been struggling to improve its brand image from controversies, ranging from selling tickets for canceled flights to illegally outsourcing jobs.
Qantas pilots working for Network Aviation, a subsidiary of the airline, are set to strike for 24 hours on October 4th, 2023, to negotiate a new deal on working terms, with workers saying that they are paid significantly less in comparison to similar airlines.
Wage and pay negotiations have been ongoing since March 2023, with the discussions having faced a halt.
The strike could impact about 50 percent of the company’s scheduled flights. Companies and regional businesses are rushing to make alternative arrangements, with a pilot strike set to temporarily ground flights across regional Western Australia. It is also expected to impact tourism and events in certain regions.
The Australian Federation of Air Pilots (AFAP) senior industrial officer, Chris Aikens, said: “The AFAP remains committed to reaching an agreement for our members in Western Australia who fly for Qantas subsidiary Network Aviation and is disappointed that we have had to take this action.”
But for Network Aviation chief operating officer Trevor Worgan, “this strike action from the Australian Federation of Air Pilots has been timed to hurt travelers during the busy school holiday period.”
The strike comes at a period in which the company has been attempting to rebuild its brand after a series of controversies.
The national carrier has been facing continuous customer disappointment over withheld travel credits, poor service and allegations it sold tickets for thousands of already canceled flights.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission will be taking Qantas to court, with claims that the airline continued to advertise and sell thousands of tickets on its website for an average of two weeks, and in some cases up to 47 days, after the cancellation of the flights.
In early September 2023, after an appeal, a high court ruling held that the company illegally outsourced 1,700 ground handler jobs, leading to the firing of employees in Qantas in Qantas Ground Services.
Qantas had claimed the outsourcing was a necessary financial step that could save 100 million Australian dollars (64 million US dollars) annually and reduce future spending on ground handling equipment, but said that it accepted the high court decision.
The ruling didn’t argue on the “commercial imperatives” of the decision the company made in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but considered it broke employees’ rights to engage in collective bargaining.
The controversy led to the resignation of the former chief executive, Alan Joyce. A month before, Qantas published record profits of 2.47 billion Australian dollars before taxes (1.6 billion US dollars) for the fiscal year 2023 ending in June, although its shares decreased 6 percent because it warned fares would likely increase moderately.
After the court decision, the new Qantas chief executive, Vanessa Hudson, issued an apology and promised to make changes to regain the trust and support of customers, and to rebuild the company’s reputation by focusing more on customer satisfaction and services.
But in late September 2023, Qantas also stated that it may increase already high ticket prices as a response to rising jet fuel costs and better customer services.
