Pay rise plus $8k bonus averts air traffic controllers’ strike

Threatened industrial action by air traffic controllers is off the table after a new pay deal was agreed with Airservices Australia.

Travellers have been spared major disruption by an air traffic controllers’ strike after an agreement was reached by Airservices, promising a pay rise and $8000 bonus.

The hard-fought deal came after controllers’ voted in favour of 24-hour strikes at 27 airports across the country in May.

It was the first time in more than 20 years that controllers had backed industrial action, and followed months of frustration emanating from staff shortages, resulting in potentially risky airspace closures.

Airservices noted that all protected industrial action had now been formally terminated following the declaration of the ballot in support of the new agreement.

It was a reasonably close result with 1097 air traffic controllers lodging a vote: 62 per cent were in favour, and 38 per cent against.

Among the features of the deal were pay rises totalling 11.2 per cent over three years and an $8000 bonus for signing on to the new agreement that could be taken in cash or added to super­annuation.

Another feature of the deal was a multi-location allowance designed to build extra resilience across the network, and a “refined classification structure” intended to ensure operational readiness.

Airservices acting CEO Peter Curran thanked all who had participated in the negotiations and achieved a “positive result”.

“This agreement will enable us to build operational resilience so we can provide the best possible service for Australia’s aviation industry and the travelling public,” Mr Curran said.

Civil Air president Tom McRobert said it was a difficult agreement to negotiate to get the right balance for everyone. He said the group was glad it did not have to resort to industrial action.

“It takes a big toll on the travelling public and we wanted to avoid that if possible,” Mr McRobert said. He said the agreement would go some way to addressing its staffing concerns, but that it was a long, slow process.

“We’ve got a bunch of new projects, all of which require extra staff, so it’s a constant battle,” Mr McRobert said.

“We’re still getting issues where we have to restrict air work, but we’re not having quite as many closures as we were.”

Some of the main “problem areas” were Avalon, Albury and Alice Springs, where a lack of staff meant frequent airspace closures.

There was also a continued reliance on “TIBA”, or traffic information broadcasts, by aircraft, which meant pilots had to report their position to others in the absence of air traffic control.

“It takes a long time training air traffic controllers, particularly in certain areas, but the agreement includes an increase in the training allowance, which is a big win,” Mr McRobert said.

“It means more recognition for training, which is at the heart of everything we do.”

Originally published as Pay rise plus $8k bonus averts air traffic controllers’ strike