http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/aviation/deadlock-in-salary-discussions/story-e6frg95x-1111116482970
THE ACTU has called on Qantas to return to the negotiating table after it backed out of wage negotiations with its engineers.
The company cancelled meetings over the wage claims scheduled for this week, prompting stopwork meetings in three states.
One hundred engineers held a four-hour stopwork meeting in Sydney yesterday morning, while another 100 stopped work from 6pm to 10pm last night. About 120 engineers are expected to stop work in Melbourne this morning. Management personnel and retirees were used to replace the engineers.
ACTU head Sharan Burrow said the airline engineers union, ALAEA, did not want to continue industrial action. "We are asking Qantas to come to the bargaining table, they have refused," she said. "They cancelled the meeting. It is incredible. There can be no negotiation with a company that is showing no respect for workers by refusing to sit at the bargaining table."
The engineers are calling for a 5 per cent wage increase, while the company is offering 3 per cent. Ms Burrow was cheered as she condemned the company's senior executives for their exploitation of the engineers' talent while granting themselves multi-million-dollar pay deals at a time of record profits. She said the company's profits had been increasing at twice the rate ofwages.
Union officials said the company offer was below inflation, represented a pay cut and would reduce their living standards.
Ms Burrow said Qantas profits were expected to increase by 40 per cent this year to about $1.5billion. Granting the engineers' claim would add an extra $2 million to the company's costs. "It is shameful," she said. "The wages claim is as affordable as anything Qantas has ever done."
Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon had given himself a 22 per cent pay rise last year, bringing his salary to almost $7 million, she said. "There is a simple principle at stake here: the engineers and other staff that are essential to keeping planes in the air and providing a high-quality service should not have to suffer a real wage cut while Qantas executives get big bonuses and the company heads for a record profit.
"Qantas management also need to be reminded that cuts to wages and costs would not attract more customers and could put at risk services and standards at the airline. Qantas engineers are highly skilled, highly professional people who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect." ALAEA federal secretary Steve Purvinas distributed a flyer to the engineers saying Qantas managers were expecting them to sign off on a 3 per cent wages policy they did not apply to themselves.
"Due to taxing shift work, most Qantas engineers are the sole income providers to their families and work extensive overtime to pay their bills," he said. "Outdoor shift work through the night takes its toll. Most will have been divorced at least once and life expectancy is seven years less than the Australian average."
On an average day, the engineers certified and were responsible for the safety of thousands of people. "During their careers the average union engineer is required to pass more than 150 examinations, many of which required extensive study in the engineers' own time", he said.
One engineer who spoke to The Australian said his base salary of $63,000 made bringing up his children and paying a mortgage in Sydney almost impossible. It was difficult for his wife to get a job because of the "extreme" shift work he was asked to do. "At any moment there are 5000 people cruising at high altitude and their lives depend on my work," he said.
His job had once been considered a highly skilled occupation deserving of a healthy salary, but he was now paid little more than the average wage.
Shortly after speaking to The Australian, the engineer was phoned by management and warned off talking to the media, he said.
Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon accused the union of being "loose with the truth" and said he would not negotiate while strikes were ongoing.
"Their claim is out of order and we're not going to entertain it," he said. "We're prepared to wait this one out. We are not going to change our view on this. We've got the long-term future of the company in mind more than anything else and if it means that some of our passengers have some discomfort for a while, that will be the case. These people must know that whatever they do won't be enough for us to change our minds."
Qantas has refused to reveal exactly how many flights were disrupted or cancelled yesterday as a result of the industrial action. Industry sources estimate about six flights were cancelled.
The airline said the vast majority of passengers were re-accommodated within 30 minutes of their original flight time.
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