Aerocare Defends Appalling Work Conditions

Aviation company trying to defend appalling work conditions that leave staff sleeping at airports

19 October 2017

The ACTU stands in solidarity with the Australian Services Union and Transport Workers Union, which are defending airport workers in the Fair Work Commission today against a disgraceful attempt by aviation company Aerocare to impose poverty level conditions on its workers.
Aerocare is appealing the Fair Work Commission’s rejection of its 2017 enterprise agreement, which contained illegal split shifts and below award pay rates, often forcing workers to sleep in airports between shifts to avoid travel costs.

Quotes attributable to ACTU President Ged Kearney:

• “Aeorcare is still arguing it should be able to exploit its workers by underpaying them and putting them on split shifts, even though the Fair Work Commission has already rejected this appalling argument once.”
• “Workers on split shifts were being forced to sleep at airports and stay at work for 17 hours while being paid for as little as six hours.”
• “These appalling conditions force working families below the poverty line and create safety and security problems at airports. It’s outrageous that airports and airlines are financially benefiting from this low cost model when they should be insisting that Aerocare rectify the situation.”
• “The billion dollar profits of Qantas and major airports are being made off the back of exploited workers. We need to change the rules so that big companies can’t get away with the driving down the living standards of workers, Everyone in this supply chain has some responsibility here to get it right.”
• “As well as appealing the Fair Work Commission’s rejection of its 2017 enterprise agreement, Aerocare will also today try to stop the TWU and ASU from challenging the 2012 agreement, in which conditions were even worse. Have they no shame?”