The Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association held rolling work stoppages across Australia on June 23 and June 24. The strike forced Qantas airlines to cancel at least 50 flights over the two-day period, followed by more cancellations throughout the week.
The 1,500 engineers are demanding Qantas give them a 5 percent pay raise to counter inflation and the rising cost of living. Qantas CEO Geoff Dixon has refused to go above 3 percent and has said he will hire non-union workers to replace the engineers.
The union is prepared to continue the rolling strikes if Qantas does not bring a better offer to the table.
ALAEA President Paul Cousins said, “The last thing Qantas engineers want to do is inconvenience the travelling public, but it is unacceptable for a company that is making record profits to expect these hardworking, highly skilled engineers to take a real pay cut.”
