Qantas delays at Sydney and Melbourne airports as engineers strike
- The industrial action could impact the airline’s flights
Hundreds of Qantas engineers have walked off the job as negotiations between the airline and unions reach an impasse.
More than 500 engineers in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth stopped work for more than 24 hours, from 3.30am on Friday to 7.30am on Saturday.
The Qantas Engineers’ Alliance, made up of members from three unions, said the strike would impact passengers at major airports because it involved line maintenance engineers who collected and towed aircraft.
Qantas has said there are unforeseen circumstances and there will likely be minimal disruption.
The workers belong to the Australian Workers Union (AWU), Electrical Trades Union (ETU) or the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU).
The engineers are asking for a 25 percent pay increase as part of negotiations on a new enterprise bargaining agreement, which the airline failed to comply with after the previous agreement expired in June.
The airline has offered a 3 percent annual pay increase for the next three years, arguing this could “help engineers earn significantly more in the coming years.”
More to follow.
Passengers on a Qantas flight in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth could be affected by a strike by the airline’s engineers on Friday