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Qantas will today (19 May) begin Federal Court proceedings to decide its penalty for illegally outsourcing ground handling roles mid-pandemic.
Editor’s note: This story first appeared on HR Leader’s sister brand, Australian Aviation.
The Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) has called for the airline to be fined a maximum of $121 million, in addition to the $120 million in compensation it’s required to pay to 1,800 affected employees.
It comes after the High Court in 2023 upheld a ruling that the Flying Kangaroo illegally sacked workers, following a protracted legal case that dragged through the courts.
“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,” said TWU’s national secretary, Michael Kaine.
“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 1,800 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 [that] have seen relationship breakdowns, mental anguish and financial burden.”
Qantas had earlier argued it had no choice but to remove the roles due to the uncertainty of COVID-19 and a potential $100 million a year cost savings the move could bring.
It meant the carrier removed operations at the 10 Australian airports where the work was done in-house, which included Adelaide, Alice Springs, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, and Townsville.
However, it eventually agreed to set up a fund following the High Court ruling, which is administered by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers on behalf of the TWU, to compensate the 1,820 affected workers.
The final figure includes the approximately 1,700 workers who lost their jobs and around 120 who were redeployed within Qantas and suffered non-economic losses.
According to Qantas, the fund will pay workers directly, with compensation amounts covering both economic and non-economic loss, as well as compensation to the TWU and any costs incurred in managing the distribution.
“This is an important step in bringing closure to these individuals, and I want to reiterate our sincere apologies to those impacted and their families,” Qantas Group CEO Vanessa Hudson said.
“We know this has been a difficult period for those affected and are pleased we have been able to work closely with the TWU to expedite this process and resolve it ahead of Christmas.”
Before the final court ruling, Qantas, under the leadership of former CEO Alan Joyce, strongly argued against the idea that it had committed any wrongdoing with its decision to outsource roles.
In December 2020, for example, it issued a furious, 600-word response that compared the union claims with “facts”.
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Outsourcing is the process of contracting a third party from outside a business to carry out tasks or produce commodities that were previously done internally by the staff and workers of the organisation.
Kace O'Neill
Kace O'Neill is a Graduate Journalist for HR Leader. Kace studied Media Communications and Maori studies at the University of Otago, he has a passion for sports and storytelling.
