Will Qantas director Todd Sampson be re-elected?

TV star Todd Sampson and former Macquarie Group executive Belinda Hutchinson will put themselves up for re-election as directors when Qantas shareholders next meet.

Qantas shareholders who have seen their investments go backwards during Alan Joyce’s time at the top will be asked to re-elect the airline’s youngest director, TV adman Todd Sampson, and its oldest, university chancellor Belinda Hutchinson.

But chairman Richard Goyder, who has been the focus of much anger over the scandals enveloping the airline, will not be asked to put his hat in the ring at the annual shareholder meeting in November because he was re-elected just last year.

The t-shirt wearing Mr Sampson, 53, best known for his role on ABC TV’s Gruen Transfer, has been on the Qantas board since 2015 while Ms Hutchinson, 70, a former Macquarie Group banker, has been on the board since 2018.

Qantas is currently amid meetings with investors after unveiling a $1.74bn after-tax profit last month on the back of bumper demand for travel after Covid.

Belinda Hutchinson. Picture: Jane Dempster/The Australian.

But the questions have an extra edge this year after Mr Joyce resigned ahead of time a fortnight ago.

His departure followed uproar over the airline’s plan to hang on to $570m in flight credits racked up by Qantas and Jetstar customers during the pandemic, a lawsuit by the consumer regulator alleging it sold tickets to flights that didn’t exist, and customer fury over poor service and high prices.

Alan Joyce resigned a fortnight ago. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Bloomberg

Qantas is also likely to face questions about new chief executive Vanessa Hudson’s pay packet after News Corp revealed on the weekend that she is set to pocket a cash retirement benefit of $5.3m if she leaves after just three years in the top job.

The payment, which is on top of her $1.6m a year base pay and bonus of up to $2.56m a year, is due under a defined benefit superannuation scheme.

Investors are also keenly awaiting the Qantas annual report, which is due by the end of the month and will detail the final payments to Mr Joyce, who has already received more than $125m from the airline since becoming CEO in 2008.

Long-term shareholders, such as superannuation funds, have done badly under Mr Joyce’s tenure, with the value of their shares dropping from about $5.81 in 2008 to about $5.51 on Monday.

During his time in the cockpit, Qantas shares dived to as low as $1.02 in 2013 before climbing to a peak of $7.40 in 2019 just before the pandemic grounded the airline’s fleet and crushed its shareprice.

New Qantas boss Vanessa Hudson. Picture: Gaye Gerard

Unions are out for blood, with the Transport Workers Union calling for the whole board to go after defeating Qantas at the High Court last week over the airline’s illegal sacking of 1700 workers during the pandemic and the Australian Licenced Aircraft Engineers Association calling for Mr Goyder’s head.

Meanwhile, Mr Goyder’s dual roles as Qantas chair and chair of the AFL Commission have also upset some in the footy industry who feel the airline could do more to reduce crippling fares for Carlton fans this weekend.

Airfares to Brisbane spiked to more than $1500 return after the Blues beat Melbourne in a thriller on Saturday night, earning them the right to face Brisbane at the Gabba this weekend.

“Fans are disappointed at the price hike,” AFL Fans Association president Ron Issko said.

“Everyone knows this happens, so they’re sort of reluctantly accepting it but not happily accepting it,” he said.

“Let’s hope more flights are put on so that Carlton fans can get up there, and not at these ridiculous prices.”

Mr Goyder said Qantas had “added more capacity” and there were now “plenty of seats up to Brisbane on Friday at $377 and back on the Monday for (the) same”.

He added that school holidays, which began this week in Victoria and Queensland, were also a factor.

Originally published as Will Qantas director Todd Sampson be re-elected?