Qantas Short Haul EA Update No 19
A reminder that voting for the proposed Qantas Airways Limited Pilots (Short Haul) Enterprise Agreement 2024 (EBA9) (proposed SH EA) opened today at 0900 (AEDT) and will close at 12 noon (AEDT) on Monday 24 February 2025.
We strongly encourage all SH pilots to take the time to assess the final document and the available information (see further below) to be informed prior to voting.
The AFAP are not endorsing the proposed SH EA. The AFAP’s position, drawn from our survey results and direct feedback from pilots, is that the EA offer does not provide the guaranteed remuneration outcomes for SH pilots you have outlined are necessary, and as such we are unable to give this new offer our endorsement.
The concern about the lack of guarantees around remuneration derived from structural changes remains. Pilots cannot rely on the Company’s purported pay gains from structural changes when guarantees are not forthcoming.
The changes needed to make this proposal fair and acceptable are numerous although not out of reach. The AFAP presented a modified and compromised position in line with good faith bargaining in our ‘post no vote’ negotiations in December (see below).
This update position was summarily dismissed by the Company once they had secured in principle agreement with AIPA, prematurely ending negotiations as we were beginning to see progress.
The Company’s second EA9 offer contains some steps in the right direction, but these positive steps must be considered in the context of the offsets being asked to pay for them.
Your Vote, Your Decision
While the AFAP believe the proposed SH EA remains inadequate in many areas, it is appropriate to allow SH pilots to weigh the risks of voting yes and no and make a decision accordingly.
Pilots must do this with a thorough understanding of what the potential next steps are. The QPC believes in equipping pilots with the best advice and understanding of the process that would follow a ‘no’ vote.
The AFAP provide the following documents to inform pilots in making their decision as to how to vote:
- The AFAP's explanatory memorandum on the second SH EA9 available here.
- The AFAP’s updated alternate offer from December 2024 is available here.
Voting information
Eligible employees will be via a secret online ballot conducted by an external independent organisation, Elections Australia Pty Ltd.
The How to Vote instruction sheet provided to pilots by Qantas at the beginning of the access period provides details on casting your vote.
Summary
We urge you to take the time to carefully read the EA documents along with the other material above from the AFAP and assess the package in its entirety before participating in the vote. Ultimately the decision rests with the pilot group as to whether the EA as proposed should be approved and the AFAP will support the decision whatever the outcome.
If the vote is yes we will respect that, and support the approval of the agreement in compliance with the Fair Work Act (noting Qantas has refused to heed to this point our concerns regarding the dispute procedure or the proposed FOT salaries we outlined in our previous Briefing here).
If the vote is no, the AFAP will be ready to consider all options to improve the deal in the areas it falls short. This will include again offering to work with AIPA.
Questions
If you have any questions or concerns over any aspects of the document, we welcome members contacting the QPC representatives below or the AFAP legal and industrial team of Senior Legal/ Industrial Officer Pat Larkins (patrick@afap.org.au), Senior Industrial Officer Chris Aikens (chris@afap.org.au), and Executive Director Simon Lutton (simon@afap.org.au) to ensure that you are informed prior to voting.
Regards,
AFAP Qantas Pilot Council
Michael Egan – Chair
Mark Gilmour – Vice- Chair
Daniel Kobeleff – Secretary
Michael Armessen – Committee Member
David LaPorte – Committee Member
Josh Chalmers – Committee Member
Rob Close – Committee Member