Around 2,000 ground handling operations employees of Qantas, Australia’s flagship carrier will be cut at ten airports across Australia to recover from the COVID-19 crisis.
In August, the airline announced its reasons for needing to restructure its ground handling operations, which includes baggage handling and aircraft cleaning, and commenced a review of external bids from specialist ground handlers and in-house bids from employees.
While proposals from employees at various ports did include detailed plans that would save around $18 million, there remained a significant gap compared to what was offered by third party providers. As required under its enterprise agreement, Qantas will now consult with its ground handling employees and their representatives on the next steps. Affected employees will be entitled to a redundancy package and given support to transition to new jobs outside the business.
Qantas domestic and international chief executive, Andrew David, said: “This is another tough day for Qantas, particularly for our ground handling teams and their families. We thank every one of them for their professionalism and contribution over the years to support our customers and operations. Unfortunately, Covid-19 has turned aviation upside down. Airlines around the world are making dramatic decisions to survive, and the damage will take years to repair.”
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Qantas Group has taken on more than $1.5 billion in additional debt.
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