AUSTRALIA

Qantas pilots plan 24 hour walkout in possible blow to oil and gas cos

Alasdair Pal
Thu, September 28, 2023 

 Sydney Airport as Australia reacts to the new coronavirus Omicron variant in Sydney

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Pilots at Network Aviation, a subsidiary of Qantas Airways, will go on strike on Oct. 4, the Australian Federation of Air Pilots (AFAP) said on Thursday, a move that could affect flights to mines and energy projects in Western Australia.

The union has been negotiating with Qantas management over wage policy revisions in the resource-rich state, which is home to large deposits of iron ore and natural gas.

“The AFAP remains committed to reaching an agreement for our members in Western Australia who fly for Qantas subsidiary Network Aviation and is disappointed that we have had to take this action,” said Senior Industrial Officer Chris Aikens.


The union represents about 85% of the 250 or so pilots flying for the airline.

More than 99.5% of AFAP pilot members at Network Aviation voted in a ballot late Monday to approve several legally-protected industrial actions that include work bans and stoppages.

Qantas did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for QantasLink, an airline brand of Qantas, on Tuesday called the proposed disruption "disappointing", adding it has offered the pilots significant pay rises and more guaranteed days off.

(Reporting by Alasdair Pal in Sydney. Editing by Gerry Doyle)

Australia's Qantas chairman says shareholders want him despite turmoil

Wed, September 27, 2023 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The chairman of Australia's Qantas Airways on Wednesday vowed to stay in his role despite a host of scandals engulfing the airline, saying its biggest shareholders wanted leadership continuity even as its shares track a one-year low.

In a parliamentary hearing, Richard Goyder resisted weeks of pressure to resign, including from the airline's own pilots, saying that he had followed "high ethics" throughout his career, and that investors considered him the best person to lead the company through a reputational crisis.

Goyder's testimony at a Senate committee amounted to a tense showdown between one of Australia's most revered corporate leaders and top lawmakers, who accused him of presiding over a company involved in potential abuse of market power and violation of consumer law, and found to have illegally sacked workers.

After the airline's long-standing CEO retired early this month, citing the need for renewal, unions, consumer groups and investors have turned their sights to Goyder. Stock analysts have downgraded the stock, citing rising costs of buying fuel and repairing its customer service systems.

"I've had meetings with our major shareholders two weeks ago, and they are very strongly supportive of me staying," Goyder told the hearing.

"I would also argue that my history in business has been of high ethics," he added, noting that he led conglomerate Wesfarmers through the 2009 financial crisis as CEO before taking Qantas "through the most existential crisis we've had as an airline".

"While I retain the confidence of shareholders and the board, I will continue to serve. If that confidence isn't maintained, then clearly I will review that decision," he said.

Asked about a federal government decision to stop Qatar Airways from doubling its potential flights to Australia, new Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson confirmed her company sent a confidential submission to the government in 2022 opposing the rival's request on grounds that "it's been incredibly important to let the market recover from the effects of COVID".

But she and Goyder, the Qantas chairman since 2018, denied having any discussions about the Qatari request with any member of the federal government.

The decision has been a lightning rod for consumer outrage at Qantas, which sells three-fifths of all Australian domestic airline tickets, because it limited competition that might have pushed fares lower, according to antitrust experts.

Jayne Hrdlicka, the CEO of Qantas's biggest domestic competitor, Virgin Australia, told the Senate hearing she regretted not lobbying harder for extra flights from Qatar, a partner airline.

"We honestly believed that the Qatar rights bid would be approved," Hrdlicka said. "It was unthinkable that it wouldn't be. The country is starving for extra capacity."

Qatar Airways' senior vice-president of global sales, Matt Raos, told the hearing the company was "surprised and shocked" its application was denied without a reason given.

(This story has been refiled to remove an extraneous word in paragraph 4)

(Reporting by Byron Kaye, Editing by Gerry Doyle)

New Qantas CEO Hudson Grilled by Lawmakers Over Raft of Scandals

Angus Whitley
Wed, September 27, 2023 at 1:04 AM MDT·3 min read


(Bloomberg) -- New Qantas Airways Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Vanessa Hudson was grilled, rebuked and chided by a parliamentary inquiry, piling more pressure on an airline already under fire for its treatment of passengers, staff and competitors.

Appearing before a senate committee in Canberra on Wednesday, Hudson first said sorry for the airline’s service levels, repeating an apology she made to passengers last week. But Senator Bridget McKenzie, chair of the committee, took Hudson to task for the airline’s failure to make a written submission to the inquiry like smaller rivals Virgin Australia and Rex.

McKenzie then criticized Hudson, Chairman Richard Goyder and General Counsel Andrew Finch, seated in a row, for not knowing the dates of certain policy decisions inside Qantas. Neither could they name the colleague liaising with government on one particular matter. The lack of a submission and ready answers, McKenzie told them, “shows a level of disrespect.”

The inquiry — ostensibly formed to investigate a government decision to block more Qatar Airways flights into Australia — on Wednesday ignited into a fiery and unrestricted attack on Qantas.

The airline’s brand and reputation are suffering from a relentless wave of negative headlines, and Qantas stock is down 24% from a June peak.

Australia’s antitrust watchdog is suing Qantas for allegedly selling fake seats on thousands of flights it had already canceled. The country’s highest court earlier this month ruled that Qantas illegally sacked almost 1,700 ground workers during the pandemic. The revelations saw then-CEO Alan Joyce bring forward his retirement and step aside for Hudson, who took over the top job just three weeks ago.

Compounding the airline’s troubles, Hudson is being forced to increase spending to bolster service levels that slipped under Joyce’s repeated cost-cutting programs. While Joyce’s tenure ended with record profits, he left many disgruntled passengers waiting for flights, looking for lost luggage, or searching for replacement services.

Read More: Virgin Australia Blindsided by Government Block on Qatar Flights

Goyder on Wednesday defended his own position, telling the committee he has the support of the company’s largest shareholders to carry on. The airline’s pilots union on Tuesday called for him to step down.

The answers from Hudson and Goyder weren’t good enough for Senator Tony Sheldon — a long-time critic of Qantas — who said he had lost count of the airline’s apologies.

“I’ve only got 10 fingers and 10 toes,” Sheldon said. He accused Goyder of failing to take responsibility for sacking the 1,700 ground workers, a decision repeatedly found by courts to be illegal.

“You refuse to hold yourself to account,” Sheldon told Goyder.

Goyder said the airline apologizes “for what happened.” But he said there were “sound commercial reasons” for the decision.

Rachel Waterhouse, CEO of the Australian Shareholders Association, said in an interview that Goyder ought to step down by the end of the year. But he must first field questions from shareholders at the annual general meeting in November, and lay out a succession plan for his role, she said. Like Joyce, Goyder must answer for decisions made under their joint watch, she said.

“They’re both absolutely responsible,” she said.

Hudson, meanwhile, reiterated a commitment to lift performance.

“There are still issues, and cancellations are higher than they should be,” Hudson said. “We’re reviewing all our customer policies and processes to ensure that they are fair. You have my commitment that we will be serving Australians better.”