Workers put at risk

It is unfortunately unsurprising that Qantas workers have contracted COVID-19 following exposure at work. Qantas has maintained that risk to workers is low despite them being on the front-line of this crisis. Here is just some of the evidence that Qantas has not only failed workers, but put them in harm’s way:

• Qantas threatened and intimidated workers and even stood down a health and safety rep for raising legitimate safety concerns.
• Qantas has been slammed by a SafeWork report over its unhygienic cleaning procedures and lack of protective equipment for workers.
• Workers have reported a haphazard response, with some ports provided with training and protective equipment and others left to ‘make do’ with a few bottles of hand sanitiser.
• Workers have reported finding out from the news about coworkers contracting the virus, rather than from their company.

Click PLAY below to hear TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine on 2GB Alan Jones Breakfast Show – “Qantas employee stood down” (6 Feb 2020)

Click PLAY below to hear TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine on 2GB Alan Jones Breakfast Show – ‘Horrified, frustrated, outraged’: Qantas slammed over handling of coronavirus (5 Mar 2020)

 

Workers bearing the brunt

Qantas continually pushes the burden of this crisis onto workers, with no guarantee that workers will be repaid when the aviation industry returns to health.

• The day after a government announcement of millions of dollars in subsidies, Qantas stood down 20,000 workers, forcing them to use up their leave entitlements, including long-service leave and leave not yet accrued.
• Workers are still suffering from a wage freeze they took when Qantas was in trouble. Even now, Qantas continues to withhold workers’ hard-earned bonuses, holding them over workers to sign onto new EA agreements.
• Qantas is playing games while workers suffer. Alan Joyce said the company does not need a bail out, but when Virgin Australia went to the Government for help, Qantas tried to outdo them with an outrageous claim for $4.2 billion.

A Government stake in airlines to keep Qantas in check

Qantas is no stranger to forcing workers and taxpayers to bail it out, but refuses to repay those people when it turns around record profits.

The TWU is calling for the Federal Government to take a stake in airlines it bails out to ensure:

• a cap on executive pay, as some European countries operate to this day following the bank bailouts during the financial crisis
• a ban on executive bonuses and shareholder dividends until workers are returned to their jobs and all leave and superannuation is paid back
• permanent full-time jobs to be maximized
• direct hire engagement of workers by the airlines, ending the fragmentation of the aviation sectors where multiple companies are pitted against each other
• workers are paid the same rate for doing the same job across the aviation sector
• contracts at the airports are scrutinized to ensure safety and job quality are the main focuses, not low cost

TWU delegates fight for Qantas workers

The TWU has called out Qantas over its poor treatment of workers, and reported the health and safety concerns to SafeWork Australia that the regulator is now investigating. TWU delegates and officials are putting pressure on the company to ensure fairer processes for stand downs and ensure worker entitlements are re-credited.

The TWU continues to pressure the Federal Government to take a stake in airlines it bails out and to ensure companies like Qantas do not exploit the new government wage subsidy for its own gain at the expense of workers entitlements.

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