[Yada Yada]

Originally Posted by smh.com.au

Unions fret about backdoor to Qantas
Scott Rochfort
June 6, 2006

The drive by Qantas to cut labour costs has sparked fears within unions the airline could seek to operate more "full-service" international flights with crews from its lower-paying Jetstar, Australian Airlines and New Zealand Jetconnect subsidiaries.

Although the Australian Airlines brand is due to disappear next month when the leisure airline's fleet of five 767s are repainted with Qantas livery, the national carrier will retain its labour agreements with Australian Airlines' 370 employees.

Australian Airlines staff are paid around one-third less than their mainline peers.

This "wet leasing" arrangement has raised talk Qantas could look to contract out more of its international operations to lower-cost subsidiaries. There are suspicions Qantas might even look to sidestep its "mainline" enterprise bargaining agreements by crewing its yet-to-be-delivered fleet of Airbus A380s and Boeing 787s with pilots and cabin crew hired through lower-paying entities.

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It's difficult to see a long-term future for unionised crews at QF.

[jakeseven7]

You know what, I think its great. I have just finished writing a 'Dear Geoff' letter, complimenting the Jetconnect service on a recent trip to NZ (both international & domestic), which in my opinion is 500X better than mainline QF Australian based crew.

I have never had such attentive yet unobtrusive service which anticipated passengers needs & made everyones trip comfortable even in the old 737's that QF australia has flung across the ditch to keep NZ honest.

I'm not sure if it is because in NZ, QF isn't as dominant as they are in Australia - and have to work a bit harder, or how Jetconnect is run - management etc. Whatever they are doing its great, and I would be more than happy to see similar crew who actually want the job working for QF....

[Yada Yada]

Originally Posted by jakeseven7

I'm not sure if it is because in NZ, QF isn't as dominant as they are in Australia - and have to work a bit harder, or how Jetconnect is run - management etc. Whatever they are doing its great, and I would be more than happy to see similar crew who actually want the job working for QF....

I think part of it is due to the culture of the company. QF has had decades of this culture and it's probably difficult for them to shake it, not to mention the entrenched conditions. I've found the DJ service (and O7 when it was flying) heaps more friendly in comparison.

[Reggie]

Originally Posted by jakeseven7

You know what, I think its great. I have just finished writing a 'Dear Geoff' letter, complimenting the Jetconnect service on a recent trip to NZ (both international & domestic), which in my opinion is 500X better than mainline QF Australian based crew.

I have never had such attentive yet unobtrusive service which anticipated passengers needs & made everyones trip comfortable even in the old 737's that QF australia has flung across the ditch to keep NZ honest.

Jakeseven7 I have also experienced this on the flights to NZ. I have had to fly there twice in the past 3 months and the service was definitely better than the normal QF standard.

[JohnK]

QF are not the only ones in union strife!

Originally Posted by news.airwise.com

Northwest Attendants Send Union Get-Tough Message
June 8, 2006

Northwest Airlines flight attendants who rejected a contract this week sent a message to their union: get tough with the carrier or clear the way for a union that will, airline experts said on Wednesday.

Members of the Professional Flight Attendants Association (PFAA) voted down a tentative contract on Tuesday that would have saved the airline USD$195 million annually while cutting flight attendants' pay by more than 20 percent.

The rejection by more than 80 percent of the voting members spoke of their displeasure with the proposal, but some analysts said it also reflected a lack of confidence in the PFAA.


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