Learned Couriers May Have Been Booked To Deliver Lockout Notices Prior To Announcement

The Australian and International Pilot's Association, which represents pilots flying for Qantas, is calling for a government inquiry into the grounding of all Qantas flights October 29th after it says it learned that the airline's management had made arrangements to deliver lockout notices days before it says the decision was made.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce had told the Australian Senate that he made the decision to lock out employees on October 29th, the same day as the grounding occurred. But the French news service AFP reports that AIPA vice president Richard Woodward said Joyce made plans to deliver the notices in advance, indicated that the "surprise" move was pre-planned.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation aired a report in which some couriers said they were told several days before the lockout that a one-day job would be available if they wanted to work on Sunday. The couriers said it wasn't couched as the possibility of working on Sunday, but that the work "delivering letters" would definitely be available.

Joyce says the company did make contingency plans, but no actual decision to ground the airline was made until it actually happened. Woodward says the the allegations may mean Joyce "lied to the Australian people and ... under oath to a Senate inquiry." He is calling for a judicial inquiry with the powers of a royal commission to "uncover the truth."

Qantas has been locked in a bitter dispute with its unions which was sent to arbitration Monday, a move the union called "disappointing." Captain Woodward said in a statement that although pilots believed a negotiated outcome was possible, management has "instead chosen the drawn-out process of arbitration."
 
“Pilots know we have a very strong case to bring to arbitration and we’re confident of getting a good result there," Woodward said. "However, it is a pity that Qantas as an airline will have to be subjected to this long, drawn-out process, when a negotiated outcome was possible. Qantas pilots simply want to operate Qantas flights. That’s why we’re in this dispute and that’s what we will continue to fight for. This isn’t about pay and it isn’t about conditions – it’s about retaining the skills and experience of Qantas pilots in Australia."

FMI: www.aipa.org.au. www.qantas.com