Qantas Engineers Stage Nationwide Strike, Demand 15% Pay Hike Amid Ongoing Dispute

More than 1,000 Qantas maintenance engineers staged a two-hour strike across major Australian airports on Monday, demanding a 15% upfront pay rise and an additional 5% increase over three years.

The engineers across major airports, including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Adelaide, and Perth, have threatened to hold further strikes if their demands aren't met.

Workers in charge of aircraft marshaling and mid-flight inspections joined the strike, participating in rolling stoppages across Australia, ABC reported.

Negotiations between Qantas and the Qantas Engineers' Alliance, comprising the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU), Australian Workers Union (AWU), and Electrical Trades Union (ETU), have been ongoing since April.

The union argues that wage hikes are well-deserved, citing the workers' specialized skills, which take decades to acquire. Additionally, the union emphasizes that engineers made significant sacrifices during the pandemic to ensure the airline's survival, Simply Flying reported.

"It's about time that Qantas showed these workers that they are valued, they are respected," AMWU national secretary Steve Murphy said, during a rally outside Qantas headquarters in Sydney. "Pay the workers back for their goodwill and their good faith during COVID when we were looking after the general public's safety and making sure that the planes were always ready to go."

The AWU emphasized that engineers feel undervalued due to zero wage growth, while senior management receives substantial bonuses. The airline's uncooperative spirit toward its engineers has smashed their morale, said Paul Farrow, the national secretary of AWU.

Meanwhile, Qantas is in talks with short-haul pilots, offering a pay freeze coupled with roster and compensation changes (30% structural adjustments). However, pilots have deemed them insufficient and sought hikes.

Michael Wright, national secretary of the ETU, stated that the strikers did not deliberately target the AFL and NRL grand final weekends.

"It's an unfortunate consequence and we're doing everything we can to limit the impact on people's holidays," he said. "But it remains the case that after 10 years of real wage cuts, the ball is in Qantas's court for how it is they're going to come forward and make good after the hard work that has kept the company aloft after all these years"