Qantas engineers launch snap 24-hour strike amid pay dispute
The Age
October 23, 2024

Hundreds of Qantas engineers have started a 24-hour strike in a bid to force airline management to negotiate their pay demands, as the airline said it did not expect the action to affect customers.

More than 300 engineers held rallies outside the international terminals at Melbourne’s Tullamarine and Brisbane airports on Wednesday morning.

Engine components maintenance engineers in Melbourne began strike action at 9am after heavy maintenance engineers in Brisbane downed tools at 1.30am.


Hundreds of Qantas workers strike
Around 300 Qantas engineers will down tools for 24 hours, with the union claiming the airline refused to meet with them about the most recent enterprise agreement.

The Qantas Engineer’s Alliance [QEA] – made up of three unions – said the airline’s management had refused to return to the bargaining table and increase its previous offer.

Qantas stated it does not expect the action to impact travellers.

“Our teams have worked hard to put contingencies in place and we don’t expect the industrial action in Melbourne and Brisbane today to have any impact [on] customers,” a Qantas spokesperson said.

“There’s been some industrial action by engineers since late September and so far we’ve been able to successfully ensure it hasn’t resulted in any flight delays or cancellations.

“We had a number of meetings with the unions prior to the industrial action. We want to continue to engage with them to find a way forward but they have chosen to take action. Our preference is to reach an agreement that includes pay rises and other benefits.”

The engineers’ current enterprise agreement expired at the end of June.



The QEA wants a pay rise of 5 per cent a year, with a 15 per cent first-year increase to compensate for 3.5 years of “wage freezes and as an industry catch-up payment”.

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“Union members are voting overwhelmingly to escalate our industrial activities,” Australian Workers’ Union national secretary Steve Murphy said in a statement.

“This is because every time there is a problem at Qantas, the executives ignore it and just hope that it will go away – well, we’re not going anywhere.”

Last month, more than 1000 Qantas engineers went on strike for two hours at major airports around Australia. The strikers are largely made up of component engineers and heavy maintenance engineers, who typically fix brake and wheel issues.

On Monday, Qantas was fined $170,000 for three test cases by the Federal Court for illegally sacking 1700 ground workers. After a decision is made on the compensation for all the workers sacked, the embattled airline could face a potential fine of more than $100 million.

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