Sign in Subscribe
COVID-19

Qantas Fined AU$90 Million for Illegal Firing of Ground Staff

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Australian airline Qantas was fined 90 million Australian dollars ($59 million) for illegally firing more than 1,800 ground staff at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline had already agreed to pay AU$120 million ($78 million) in compensation to its former employees. The penalty is the largest and most significant contravention of Australian labor laws in their 120-year history, with Justice Michael Lee ruling that the minimum fine to create a deterrence should be AU$90 million ($59 million).

Key Takeaways:

  • Qantas was fined AU$90 million ($59 million) for illegally firing 1,800 ground staff at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
  • The airline had already agreed to pay AU$120 million ($78 million) in compensation to its former employees.
  • The penalty is the largest and most significant contravention of Australian labor laws in their 120-year history.
  • Justice Michael Lee ruled that AU$50 million ($33 million) of the fine should go to the Transport Workers Union.
  • A hearing will be held to decide where the remaining AU$40 million ($26 million) of the fine will go.
  • Qantas expected to save AU$125 million ($81 million) a year through outsourcing the jobs.
  • Qantas executives had expected to save AU$125 million ($81 million) a year through outsourcing the jobs.
  • Transport Workers Union national secretary Michael Kaine felt vindicated by the ruling, which ends a five-year legal battle.
  • Qantas has admitted illegally dealing with passengers as well as employees in its responses to pandemic economic challenges.

Statistics:

  • AU$90 million ($59 million) - the fine imposed on Qantas for illegally firing ground staff.
  • AU$120 million ($78 million) - the compensation Qantas had already agreed to pay its former employees.
  • AU$125 million ($81 million) - the yearly savings Qantas expected to achieve through outsourcing the jobs.
  • AU$33 million ($22 million) - the amount of the fine that Justice Lee ruled should go to the Transport Workers Union.
  • 5 years - the length of the legal battle pursued by the Transport Workers Union against Qantas.
  • 1,820 - the number of ground staff fired by Qantas at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sources:

  • [Associated Press] - Melbourne (AP), January 2025
  • [Statement from Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson]
  • [Judgment from Australian Federal Court Justice Michael Lee]

Read more