Peak-hour flights across Australia are at risk of being disrupted as hundreds of Qantas engineers at major airports are downing tools for the second time in three days.
It is the latest of a series of strikes coordinated by the Qantas Engineers’ Alliance since late September, after pay negotiations underway since April failed to reach a resolution.
Around 600 line maintenance engineers are carrying out two four-hour stoppages at airports in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart.
Line maintenance engineers are responsible for conducting the final safety checks before aircraft depart and towing and marshalling planes.
The Alliance is asking for a five per cent pay rise per year, starting with a 15 per cent pay rise this year to compensate to 3.5 years of wage freezes.
“As Qantas celebrates another year of billion-dollar profits, we want to remind people that their success, and their strong safety record and reputation is due to the hard work of their engineers keeping the planes in the air,” Paul Farrow, the national secretary of the Australian Workers Union, said.
The strikes will take place at peak domestic flight times, in the early morning and then again at 5pm or 6pm this evening.
However, Qantas insists the strikes are unlikely to impact flights or cause delays, noting that the strikers rostered on shift during these times – around 400 workers – make up only a small proportion of Qantas’ 2,600-strong engineering team.
“Our teams have worked hard to put contingencies in place and we expect there to be no impact to our customers,” a Qantas spokesperson said.
