Vic: Qantas under pressure in AIRC today

AAP General News (Australia)
12-17-2001
Vic: Qantas under pressure in AIRC today

MELBOURNE, Dec 17 AAP - Qantas comes under increased union pressure today when international
cabin crews join maintenance workers who have been locked in a bitter wage negotiation
for the last 18 months.

The cabin crews' existing Enterprise Bargaining Agreement expires today, allowing them
to begin negotiations and potentially forcing the airline to fight union action on two
fronts.

A secret ballot of the company's 2,500 maintenance workers rejected the airline's latest
offer of incentive payments of between one and 10 per cent depending on profits after
an 18-month wage freeze.

The two sides head back to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission in Melbourne today.

Members of the Australian Workers' Union (AWU) and Australian Manufacturing Workers'
Union (AMWU) were prompted by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission to conduct
the ballot last week.

Their rejection means Qantas now has to come up with an improved offer before the Commission,
AWU National Secretary Bill Shorten said.

"What we need to do now is recommence talks with Qantas and come up with a more acceptable
deal that doesn't propose a glass ceiling at the same time as it offers our members a
wage freeze," he said.

Both unions have threatened more industrial action if Qantas does not start bargaining
in good faith.

The airline said it was disappointed at the ballot result but would not relent from
its push for the wage freeze, a company spokeswoman said.

Nine out of the 11 unions affected had agreed to the wage freeze which represented
92 per cent of Qantas' workforce, she said.

AMWU national secretary Doug Cameron said "well over 90 per cent" of the maintenance
workers voted against the proposal.

Mr Cameron said workers around the country were achieving wage increases of between
four and six per cent and Qantas maintenance staff were seeking something similar.

AAP ag/jmd/sb

KEYWORD: QANTAS WAGES DAYLEAD

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