Sydney Airport is once again in the crosshairs of chaos, with staff threatening strike action if their pay and working conditions fail to improve.
Following weeks of crazy airport delays, (with Sydney Airport voted in the top 10 of the world’s worst) insanely long security queues and what the Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) has called “chronic understaffing”, ground staff have had enough – both at Sydney Kingsford Smith, and across the world.
Emirates-owned baggage-handling group Dnata will be applying to the Fair Work Commission for a vote on strike action, with workers calling for better pay, improved working conditions and more secure jobs, with Dnata ground-crew saying to the TWU that there have been numerous safety incidents around Qantas aircraft in the midst of the recent staffing shortages and rushed working attitudes that have been coming down from the top.
Speaking to the ABC, the TWU said that these incidents have included; “belt loaders crashing into planes, locking pins left in landing gear and incorrect weight information given to pilots before take-off."
Dnata staff supply services to up to 20 international airlines, with them arriving in Sydney following Qantas’ controversial cost-cutting decision (which was subsequently found to be an illegal breach of the Fair Work Act by the Federal Court) to lay off 1,600 ground staff in 2020. As third-party contractors, Dnata employees did not receive financial backing or support from their employers or the Morrison government during two-years of stand-down.
As such, staff are now saying that they want to be properly compensated and protected from volatile pay cuts and poor conditions, with one-minute work stoppages likely to go ahead at Sydney Airport following the ballots close on August 10.
Qantas has expressed disappointment in the TWU for this move, with a spokesperson saying that they “never compromise on safety”, and that they are willing to work with Dnata to deal with any disruptions resulting from the strikes.
“This is going to disrupt thousands of people wanting to go on holidays and visit family and friends.” A Qantas spokesperson said to news.com.
“With the industry still recovering from the impact of the pandemic, the last thing it needs is the threat of industrial action.”