Qantas and a key union are at odds over job security amid a round of job cuts linked to the adoption of new technology at the airlineโs Sydney headquarters.
The Australian Services Union said workers were told they would be replaced by AI, though the union did not provide details of that claim, which the airline denies.
On Monday, Qantas and the union are scheduled to meet for consultation following the termination of 30 roles at company headquarters last week.
While the 30 roles have been eliminated as Qantas simplifies its management structure, the consultation will determine whether staff who held those positions can be relocated to other roles, and what redundancy payments are on offer. The jobs were at Qantasโ headquarters in Mascot, NSW.
The ASU also wants to know whether the reductions are the first round of a multi-tranche redundancy plan. Under the terms of the EBA signed in January, Qantas has an obligation to consult on jobs, the union said.
โUnless Qantas is prepared to immediately back away from this announcement and commence genuine consultation with the union and our members, we see no alternative other than to lodge a dispute with the Fair Work Commission,โ the unionโs NSW ACT secretary, Angus McFarland, said.
The affected jobs include freight, crew support, finance and airport services, among other roles.
โOur members need to know that their jobs are safe and secure,โ McFarland said. โIf their jobs are redundant, they need to know that their entitlements will be paid, or they will be offered training to apply for new jobs.
โJust six months ago, when we bargained for a new agreement, Qantas refused to provide any protections for our members against job losses due to AI โ now we know why.โ
Qantas denied the job losses were related to AI, but it did not dispute that other technology played a role. It said the company continues to grow in other areas. It also said no further jobs should be cut as part of the restructure announced in December 2025.
โWe advised the Australian Services Union on Wednesday last week of the changes and are meeting with them on Monday to discuss ways to reduce the impact on affected employees,โ a company spokesperson said.
โThis includes considering redeployment opportunities into one of the newly created roles resulting from these changes, or into other roles across the group.โ
The union also questioned whether the redeployment of laid-off staff was โgenuineโ โ with appropriate work, pay, responsibility and shifts.
McFarland said: โOur members turned up for work on Wednesday, were taken aside and told effectively that their job had been replaced by AI and they have four weeks to find another job.โ
When asked for more detail, the union would not say what AI tools it claimed Qantas was using to replace the staff.
The job cuts followed Qantasโ December 3 announcement that it would trim the size of its group leadership team while elevating the role of a technology-focused executive.
In December, QantasLink chief Rachel Yangoyan was named chief technology, AI and transformation officer to oversee โAI strategy, data and analytics and enterprise technology-driven transformation programsโ.
At the time, chief executive Vanessa Hudson said the company was recruiting a group chief AI officer โto lead implementation and scaling of AI across the organisationโ and that recruitment was under way.
Qantas is establishing a product innovation centre in Adelaide to sharpen its delivery of โworld-leading digital experiencesโ for the millions of customers who travel with the airline each year.
Hudson has worked to improve morale and industrial relations within the company since taking over from Alan Joyce in 2023, amid bitter recriminations between staff and management. The company was later found to have unlawfully sacked nearly 1800 ground crew in 2020.
Hudson ordered a $1000 one-off โthank youโ to 23,000 non-executive staff, praising employeesโ โfantasticโ efforts in 2024. Last year, she followed up by outlining a non-executive employee share plan that provides staff with $1000 worth of shares every year, linked to Qantasโ financial performance.
Despite efforts to rebuild trust between management and staff, the aviation sector as a whole is not immune to the impact of technology reshaping workflows and employment.
Innovations in ticketing, marketing and operations are flowing through the aviation industry, even as the air carriers seek to manage costs by refreshing their fleets with newer, more efficient planes, which can dramatically affect costs.
Anxiety about the impact of artificial intelligence has become a recurring theme across industries as varied as education, financial services and programming.
Qantas is scheduled to release its half-year financial results on February 26.
The airline is coming off a strong performance last year, where underlying earnings climbed 15 per cent to $2.39 billion โ a boost driven by a surge in vacation travel, significant expansion from Jetstar, and a positive future forecast.
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Chris Zappone is a senior reporter covering aviation and business. He is former digital foreign editor.Connect via X, Facebook or email.
