Qantas Shutdown

[Nigel C]

Originally Posted by Raymond Rowe

And people here would not have the working conditions today if our grandfathers and fathers stood by the unions and got our conditions today that the current generation would not like to work under.It easy to see some people would work for next to nothing.The engineers spend many years studying and going thru many sleepless nights like the pilots do.So why should joyce get paid 5 million and everone else a few grains of rice like peoplke here would like to see.Hate to think what what sort of conditions some work under.

A few grains of rice? There'd be plenty of shift workers who'd take their 'grains of rice' at the drop of a hat! And for the sleepless nights comment, I'm a shiftworker too; I reap the benefits, but I also suffer the negatives. That's MY choice, just as it is the engineers and pilots choice. Don't like it? Go work in the parts of GA that do Monday to Friday working 9-5.

I've got no problems with people negotiating a fair work agreement (pay, conditions etc), but personally I think it's a bit rich when people start talking about jobs guarantees like the unions have. The market's just too globally competitive for restrictions like that, and if the current workforce aren't delivering the results like the competition are, then it should only be expected that the employer will look for more streamlined ways to do business and maximise profits for the shareholders (if you've got superannuation, you're probably one of them!).

[Stuart Trevena]

Hi All,

Any reason why VB couldn't use an EK B773ER to assist?
It is parked all day at YMML from about 0900 until 1700

Stuart

[Raymond Rowe]

Originally Posted by Nigel C

And for the sleepless nights comment, I'm a shiftworker too; I reap the benefits, but I also suffer the negatives.

Nigel where have i mentioned Shift Workers .The amount of study involved to get and aircraft licence is very time consuming and many guys stay up late studying.The pilots spend many dollars to get where they are why should they not ask for job security when you have an airline that no longer wants to call Australia home..I also worked shift work for 11 years.

[Rowan McKeever]

Imagine the reason DJ haven't enlisted the EK 773 or the Chinese aircraft is that they're exhausting the possibilities with their partners first (quicker response because the relationships are already there).

And I'd say EY and other international carriers would use the international terminals and have the domestic 'D' sticker on pax' boarding cards.

[Michael Mak]

What about Virgin Atlantic's A340-600? It sits on the tarmac for hours too before returning to Hong Kong and London. Are things close between two Virgins?

[Todd Hendry]

Well said Raymond.

[Brad E]

Would it be wrong to assume that QF Pilots, Engineers and Ground Staff are the best paid and have the best conditions and perks amongst their local counterparts (VOZ, JST, RXA, etc) and if not the rest of the world? I don't see any issues at those airlines - so this argument about Pilots and Engineers requiring job security only applies at QFA?

The industry is globalised, infact this industry is largely responsible for the globalised world we live in. If QFA can't compete with its domestic competitors or on the global market the business will simply fail causing far more instability than the month of industrial action and a brief shutdown.

[Nigel C]

Ray, the main push for job security that I can see in the media seems to be coming from the very vocal TWU, and not the pilot's association.

But let's face it, the amount of study required to get many qualifications these days is very time consuming, and yes, many people stay up late to do so. Why should the engineers be feeling so precious?

But I also fail to see why, when someone chooses to spend vast amounts of time and/or money attaining their qualification, that should guarantee them a job at the end of it. The world, and the job market, has changed...time to get with the program. Even a government job isn't a 'job for life' like it used to be.

Find me 10 other, no, make that 5 other industries that offer 'job security' with the one employer these days.


It's time for both sides to get reasonable in their negotiations.

[Raymond Rowe]

Nigel i agree with you.But Joyce has gone way to far this time.

[Robert S]

In my opinion, you just can't point out that Joyce has gone way too far without acknowleding that the unions have also done so.

The other thing that gets me which doesn't get much mention is the completely disingenuous strategy of notifying of strike action then "cancelling" it at the last moment after the airline has already cancelled flights and notified customers. Effect of strike action in place, but strikers get to bank their day's pay. To then go around this weekend and say "we only spent x hours on strike" only served to perpetuate this disingenuous behaviour. This is not the behaviour of people negotiating in good faith - the moment they did that they lost any moral high ground they had as far as I'm concerned (now no-one has it).