Transport Workers Union slammed for wasting the court’s time over Qantas legal battle as airline faces mammoth multimillion dollar payout for illegally sacking 1,700 workers during the Covid pandemic

The Transport Workers Union has been criticized for wasting the court’s time in a protracted battle to force Qantas to compensate 1,700 illegally dismissed workers.

The Federal Court ruled in 2021 that the controversial airline had acted unlawfully when it dismissed ground services employees and outsourced their tasks to contractors in 2020.

Qantas’ attempts to overturn the guilty verdict were unsuccessful and the case was returned to the Federal Court on Monday to determine damages.

Outside court, Transport Workers Union lawyer Josh Bornstein estimated that the payments for laid-off workers would be “very, very substantial, running into many millions of dollars.”

The union argued that the sheer size of the compensation is commensurate with Qantas’ culpability in the largest case of illegal dismissals in corporate Australian history.

Embattled airline Qantas is facing a multimillion-dollar damages bill after being found guilty of illegally firing its 1,700 workers during the Covid pandemic.

The Federal Court ruled in 2021 that the airline had acted unlawfully when it dismissed ground services employees at eleven airports in 2020 and outsourced their duties to contractors.

The case returned to court on Monday to determine damages after the High Court rejected Qantas’ attempt to appeal the verdict.

But on Monday, Judge Michael Lee accused the TWU of “wasting the court’s time” after lawyer Mark Gibian SC said the union would seek compensation for lost membership fees.

Judge Lee said this was the “first (he) heard of it”, despite his call for the parties to file damages claims last year.

He told the court he intended to hear all damages claims against Qantas in one hearing.

Judge Lee demanded to know “what possible excuse” the union had for “sitting on its behind” during the months it could have prepared its claim.

‘It’s all well and good to send out tweets patting yourself on the back about how much you look out for your members, but perhaps using legal proceedings responsibly to get this resolved quickly for members could be a good way are to continue. he told TWU’s lawyer.

‘It’s not good enough.’

Judge Lee said he was aware of the need to resolve the years-long dispute and get compensation “into the hands of workers as quickly as possible.”

The court was told that 716 of the 1,700 illegally dismissed staff were TWU members.

Qantas’ lawyer Matthew Follett SC said the damages claim would rely on the union’s membership data, which has previously been criticized for a “lack of clarity and accuracy”.

Judge Lee stated that after the hearing, TWU could file a separate compensation application to determine the amount to be paid to the illegally dismissed employees.

Outside court, former Qantas employee Don Dixon told reporters he hoped this would finally be the end of a three-year legal battle with the airline.

“Probably the most fundamental thing for all the workers I represent is that we have done absolutely nothing wrong,” he said.

In a statement, Qantas reiterated its apology to the 1,700 affected employees.

“Qantas sincerely apologizes and deeply regrets the personal impact the outsourcing decision has had on these former employees,” a spokesperson said.

‘We want them to receive fair compensation as quickly as possible.’

The sheer scale of the potential compensation reflects that Qantas has engaged in the largest illegal plunder in the history of Australian business.

Parliamentary industrial relations secretary Mark Buttigieg said the ruling against the airline was a “damning indictment of a once great company.”

He noted that Qantas accepted $800 million in taxpayers’ money to keep people in jobs before unlawfully firing 1,700 staff.

“I hope Qantas learns from this lesson, this litany of failures and treating workers so shabbily, and comes to the party to do the right thing,” the Labor MP said.

Former Qantas employee Don Dixon told reporters he hoped this would finally mark the end of a three-year legal battle with the airline.

“Probably the most fundamental thing for all the workers I represent is that we have done absolutely nothing wrong,” he said.

“We haven’t seen anything that looks like an apology (or) financial assistance.”

TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said its 1,700 workers had “been through hell” after being unlawfully dismissed three years ago.

“It’s time for Qantas to pay up,” he said.

Judge Michael Lee will hear three test cases to determine the amount of compensation to be paid to the illegally dismissed workers.