Fed: Qantas and union's wage talks turn fiery

AAP General News (Australia)
12-21-2001
Fed: Qantas and union's wage talks turn fiery

By Jane Williams, Industrial Correspondent

MELBOURNE, Dec 21 AAP - Qantas wage talks ended in a fiery outburst today, with unions
claiming a complete breakdown in negotiations.

Sources inside the confidential conference at the Australian Industrial Relations Commission
(AIRC) in Melbourne said talks ended in a heated exchange between Australian Manufacturing
Workers Union (AMWU)national secretary Doug Cameron and Qantas chief financial officer
Peter Gregg.

Mr Cameron later accused Qantas of provoking the dispute.

"We want to sit down at the negotiating table, but Qantas have walked away," he said.

Qantas public affairs general manager Michael Sharp said while there had been a fiery
exchange inside the commission both sides were still talking.

Mr Sharp denied Qantas had walked away and said unions had been told talks would continue
in the first fortnight of January.

"Both sides put forward a modified proposition today," Mr Sharp said.

"There was some common ground, but Qantas could not commit to the unions' wage increases
in the second year (of the proposed deal) because of uncertainty in the international
and domestic aviation situation."

Work bans remain with no plans to escalate action over the Christmas period.

But unions sources today said there were fears it would be Qantas which provoked further
action initiating stand-downs of AMWU and Australian Workers Union (AWU) maintenance workers.

Such a move would start an industrial war between the parties, with unions threatening
picket lines.

"If stand-downs prevail, Qantas flights will grind to a halt," union sources said.

Mr Sharp said stand-downs had begun with some workers sent home without pay after refusing
to carry out normal duties.

A sticking point in the negotiations is a Qantas demand they receive the same treatment
as competitors Ansett during enterprise bargaining negotiations.

The AMWU and the AWU are yet to enter into negotiations with Ansett which sealed deals
with five key unions yesterday.

Ten out of 12 unions have agreed to a Qantas wage freeze proposal.

The AMWU and the AWU have been negotiating the proposal for six months without a break-through
and have called on Qantas to have the dispute arbitrated by an independent AIRC umpire.

Qantas has refused, saying the airline was committed to reaching a negotiated outcome.

Flights over Christmas would not be disrupted, Mr Sharp said.

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KEYWORD: QANTAS NIGHTLEAD

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