Qantas Hit with Fine for Pandemic Sackings as Judge Slams Lack of Contrition

Qantas Hit with Fine for Pandemic Sackings as Judge Slams Lack of Contrition

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Key Takeaways
  • Record Fine: Qantas ordered to pay $58.6 million (AUD 90 million), the largest penalty ever under Australia’s labour laws.
  • Judge’s Rebuke: Justice Michael Lee said the airline’s apologies amounted to the “wrong kind of sorry,” more about reputation than workers.
  • Union Triumph: $32.6 million (AUD 50 million) of the fine goes to the Transport Workers’ Union, which fought the case on behalf of 1,820 sacked ground staff.
  • Broader Message: The ruling signals that unlawful “adverse action” against workers can lead to steep penalties and direct union payouts.
  • Cultural Scrutiny: Despite a $78.1 million (AUD 120 million) compensation fund and public apologies, Qantas faces ongoing criticism over its litigation strategy and corporate culture.
Deep Dive

Qantas Airways has been hit with a penalty of $58.6 million (AUD 90 million) after illegally sacking nearly 2,000 ground staff during the COVID-19 pandemic, a decision that a Federal Court judge said was more about protecting profits than people.

The fine, the largest ever imposed under Australia’s labour laws, came with a stinging rebuke from Justice Michael Lee, who questioned whether the airline’s apologies carried any real weight.

“I accept Qantas is sorry, but I am unconvinced that this measure of regret is not, at least in significant measure… the wrong kind of sorry,” Lee said. He made clear that the size of the penalty, about three-quarters of the legal maximum, was designed so the airline couldn’t simply treat it as “the cost of doing business.”

A Union Victory That Almost Didn’t Happen

For the Transport Workers’ Union, which brought the case, the decision marks a rare victory against one of Australia’s corporate giants. Half of the fine, $32.6 million (AUD 50 million), will go directly to the TWU.

Its national secretary, Michael Kaine, spoke bluntly, “Against all the odds, we took on a behemoth… that had shown itself to be ruthless, and we won,” he said, his comments underscoring just how bitter the fight has been since Qantas pushed the workers out.

This fine comes on top of a $78.1 million (AUD 120 million) compensation fund Qantas agreed to in December to make amends with the sacked employees.

A Costly Decision Born in a Crisis

Back in 2020, Qantas’ senior leadership decided to lay off 1,820 ground staff and outsource their roles to contractors. At the time, management framed it as a tough but necessary business decision in the middle of an aviation crisis. The courts didn’t see it that way.

In 2021, the Federal Court ruled the move was unlawful “adverse action” under the Fair Work Act because it stripped workers of their right to union representation. Qantas fought the finding all the way to the High Court and lost.

Along the way, the airline’s tactics only added fuel to the fire. Judge Lee criticized Qantas for rushing into an appeal “without any time passing” to digest the 431-paragraph ruling against it, then spinning the outcome when it lost. He also took aim at Qantas for shielding executives, including current CEO Vanessa Hudson, then chief financial officer, from facing questions in court.

“It is one thing for the ‘Qantas News Room’ to issue press releases by a CEO saying sorry; it is quite another for written assertions of contrition, recognition of wrong and cultural change to be tested in a courtroom,” Lee observed.

More Than Just a Legal Defeat

Labour lawyers say the case is unprecedented in scope and impact. Maurice Blackburn, which represented the TWU, called it “record-breaking”.

Qantas, for its part, says it will pay up. Hudson, now leading the airline through a period of cultural repair, repeated the company’s apology in a carefully worded statement, “We sincerely apologize to each and every one of the 1,820 ground handling employees and to their families.”

Still, the judgment leaves Qantas with more than just a hefty bill. It faces an enduring question over whether its apology was genuine, or just another corporate strategy to manage the damage?

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