Qantas Engineering: unpiloted mystery flight

21 June 2012

Unions today questioned what strategy is in place at Qantas, as the company announced further job losses in aircraft maintenance ­ this time at its Sydney
operations.

120 Component Maintenance Engineers face an uncertain future following Qantas' announcement that it will close the Sydney component maintenance facility, transferring 747, and 767 component maintenance to Melbourne.

AMWU National Assistant Secretary Glenn Thompson said the cutbacks came just one month after Qantas announced the closure of its heavy maintenance facility at Tullamarine, with the loss of some 400 jobs.

No Strategy

"For Qantas maintenance workers, it feels like their jobs have boarded an unpiloted, mystery flight with no strategic flight plan programmed in," Mr Thompson said.
"One month jobs are going from one area, next month jobs are arriving but being lost elsewhere.
"Our concern is firstly for these workers and their families but more broadly about a lack of strategic thinking for Australia's national aviation engineering and maintenance capacity."
"We have called upon Minister Albanese and the Government to convene an Aviation Industry round table to discuss the direction of the industry and to ensure that Australia has a capacity to maintain aircraft into the future."

Skilled workforce being lost

ETU National Industrial Officer Matt Murphy said Qantas has continued, without pause or any consultation, to further reduce its highly skilled and dedicated engineering workforce.

"Sooner or later, the question needs to be asked: with major Australian companies continually announcing restructures and cuts is this just the latest attack on Australian workers and their employment conditions?" Mr Murphy said.

Time for Qantas to come clean

AWU National Assistant Secretary Scott McDine said Qantas employs almost two­thirds of Australia's total aircraft maintenance workforce and is responsible for providing more than 50 per cent of the training and know how in the sector.

"We have major concerns that Qantas has no long term vision for its engineering operations," Mr McDine said.
"Qantas engineering is vital to Australia's ability to build and maintain its skills base in this sector.
"This is another blow to Qantas workers and their families and highlights the continued uncertainty that they face. It's time for Qantas to come clean with its long­term plans for its engineering operations".