Election 2025: Qantas workers win with $8000 pay rise deal

The Transport Workers Union’s deal with Qantas Freight delivers $8000 pay rises for labour hire workers.

TWU national secretary Michael Kaine has welcome the pay deal with Qantas Freight. Picture: NewsWire / John Appleyard

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The Transport Workers Union has used Labor’s “same job, same pay” laws to strike an agreement with Qantas Freight that will deliver pay rises of up to $8000 for labour hire workers, sparking a fresh industrial relations fight between the ALP and Coalition.

In the latest same job, same pay deal secured by unions, the TWU’s in-principle agreement with Qantas Freight will see significant wage increases for labour hire workers at two companies, Wymap and Programmed, who work alongside directly hired ground crew.

The deal will result in increases to base rates, allowances, overtime and shift penalties that equate to average annual rises of about $5000, with some up to $8000, for the 200 workers.

Qantas employs workers through 38 subsidiaries and labour companies, with the TWU maintaining many were set up deliberately to suppress the wages and conditions of workers.

TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said Qantas Freight had six groups doing the same job but employed under different pay and conditions.

“Qantas pioneered the strategy of paying people less to do the same job, and were a key reason these laws were necessary in the first place. These workers will now be thousands better off, as they should have been to start with,” he said.

Qantas confirmed the agreement, saying it was prepared to work constructively with unions for same job, same pay applications on a case-by-case basis.

In a bid to blunt Labor’s attacks over workers’ pay, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has promised not to repeal the same job, same pay laws if he wins on May 3, prompting vows by business they would seek to water down the legislation.

The Coalition has said it would assess potential changes to the laws if it wins office following a post-election statutory review of the legislation.

Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt congratulated the TWU and Qantas Freight.

“This is a meaningful step to ensure workers who are employed through labour hire are paid the same as direct employees who they work alongside,” Senator Watt said.

Declaring the laws had delivered significant wage rises to thousands of workers in aviation, mining, meat processing and warehousing, he said Mr Dutton voted against the laws.

“Peter Dutton’s claim he wouldn’t scrap same job, same pay laws didn’t even last a day before Michaelia Cash raised the prospect of changing them if the Liberals win power,” he said.

But Opposition employment spokeswoman, Michaelia Cash rejected the claims.

“Murray Watt is making stuff up again. No one is listening to him, so he has to resort to ridiculous scare campaigns,” she said.

“The Coalition has made it clear we will not repeal same job, same pay.”

Meanwhile, ACTU secretary Sally McManus criticised Senator Cash for refusing to debate Senator Watt.

“What is there to hide? Peter Dutton could simply rule out any changes to workplace laws beyond the things they have announced. It’s not that hard.

“After multiple backflips on IR policy this election and now a refusal to release a policy after promising they would, working people cannot trust Peter Dutton with their rights at work.”