panopticon
22nd May 2012, 13:12
Recently Qantas has announced it will 'cut more than 530 heavy maintenance staff at their Tullamarine and Avalon facilities' in an effort to save money... Now that's bad enough in itself, but add to that the recent allegations made by Choice Australia (http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/qantas-surcharge-rip-off.aspx) (a consumer advocates group) that Qantas has been essentially stealing money from its customers (via credit card transaction fees) and that now Qantas has also announced that it will be separating its domestic and international businesses...
We now officially have an "interesting state of affairs".
There was all the controversy last (http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/airline-that-stops-a-nation-20111029-1mpgc.html) year when Qantas closed down by locking out its employees for a few days, stranding some 90,000 passengers world-wide in the process, just to make a point. The point was that they didn't want to pay their employees in alignment with the CPI (@ 3.4183% for 2011 (http://www.rateinflation.com/inflation-rate/australia-historical-inflation-rate.php?form=ausir)) but wanted to pay them less, in real terms, than their present wage (Qantas were offering 3% pa [well below the CPI] and when that didn't work they threw a hissy fit, locked out their employees and stranded their passengers)... Great stuff! Then there's all the allegations (http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/please-explain-letter-to-qantas-20111029-1mp8y.html) that the board (mainly CEO Alan Joyce) is trying to circumvent the QANTAS SALE ACT (1992) (http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/qsa1992120/) by moving its base of operations off-shore as well as the recent statement that it will no longer be employing any new local people (again in direct violation of the QANTAS SALE ACT):
MR ADAM HATCHER: It follows from that, at least so far as the airports division is concerned, that there will not be, in future, any new persons employed by Qantas in airports?
...
MATT LEE: Yes, that's correct. (Source (http://www.twu.com.au/home/media/qantas-job-cuts-will-have-tragic-consequences-for-/))
So how is Qantas ripping of its passengers according to Choice (http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/qantas-surcharge-rip-off.aspx)?
Well it involves them charging domestic passengers a $7.70 fee for using a credit card and four times that for International passengers.
This gives them a tidy $100 million skim off the top for doing nothing in particular:
... we estimate Qantas is now collecting more than $204 million in surcharges every year, while potentially paying less than half of that to their bank to process the transactions. (Source (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-18/qantas-accused-of-credit-card-rip-off/4019762))
Yeah, it's great to have a big business like Qantas as an Australian icon...
But is it Qantas' fault? Yeah, most Aussies see the CEO as a bit of a wanker, but Qantas is competing in an international industry where Government subsidies are rampant and it doesn't get one...
While I hate to admit it, unless the Aussie government decides to offer a subsidy to Qantas things are just going to go from the sublime to the ridiculous. That's what I reckon Joyce's little hissy fit last year was about. He wants Government to take notice and help out "The Flying Kangaroo" before it becomes "The Startled Wombat".
If there was a level playing field I'd say "push off Joysee" but there isn't and that's the problem. However, while I can understand the problems they're facing, ripping off passengers (by over pricing surcharges) is not on and that needs to be sorted...
Kind Regards, :yo:
Panopticon
Resources Used:
http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/qantas-surcharge-rip-off.aspx
http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2012/s3508571.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-18/qantas-accused-of-credit-card-rip-off/4019762
http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/please-explain-letter-to-qantas-20111029-1mp8y.html
http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/airline-that-stops-a-nation-20111029-1mpgc.html
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/qsa1992120/
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/qantas-will-sack-500-staff-to-save-money/story-e6freuzr-1226362874656
http://www.twu.com.au/home/media/qantas-job-cuts-will-have-tragic-consequences-for-/
http://www.twu.com.au/home/media/latest-qantas-announcement-a-road-map-to-break-up-/
http://www.rateinflation.com/inflation-rate/australia-historical-inflation-rate.php?form=ausir
We now officially have an "interesting state of affairs".
There was all the controversy last (http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/airline-that-stops-a-nation-20111029-1mpgc.html) year when Qantas closed down by locking out its employees for a few days, stranding some 90,000 passengers world-wide in the process, just to make a point. The point was that they didn't want to pay their employees in alignment with the CPI (@ 3.4183% for 2011 (http://www.rateinflation.com/inflation-rate/australia-historical-inflation-rate.php?form=ausir)) but wanted to pay them less, in real terms, than their present wage (Qantas were offering 3% pa [well below the CPI] and when that didn't work they threw a hissy fit, locked out their employees and stranded their passengers)... Great stuff! Then there's all the allegations (http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/please-explain-letter-to-qantas-20111029-1mp8y.html) that the board (mainly CEO Alan Joyce) is trying to circumvent the QANTAS SALE ACT (1992) (http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/qsa1992120/) by moving its base of operations off-shore as well as the recent statement that it will no longer be employing any new local people (again in direct violation of the QANTAS SALE ACT):
MR ADAM HATCHER: It follows from that, at least so far as the airports division is concerned, that there will not be, in future, any new persons employed by Qantas in airports?
...
MATT LEE: Yes, that's correct. (Source (http://www.twu.com.au/home/media/qantas-job-cuts-will-have-tragic-consequences-for-/))
So how is Qantas ripping of its passengers according to Choice (http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/qantas-surcharge-rip-off.aspx)?
Well it involves them charging domestic passengers a $7.70 fee for using a credit card and four times that for International passengers.
This gives them a tidy $100 million skim off the top for doing nothing in particular:
... we estimate Qantas is now collecting more than $204 million in surcharges every year, while potentially paying less than half of that to their bank to process the transactions. (Source (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-18/qantas-accused-of-credit-card-rip-off/4019762))
Yeah, it's great to have a big business like Qantas as an Australian icon...
But is it Qantas' fault? Yeah, most Aussies see the CEO as a bit of a wanker, but Qantas is competing in an international industry where Government subsidies are rampant and it doesn't get one...
While I hate to admit it, unless the Aussie government decides to offer a subsidy to Qantas things are just going to go from the sublime to the ridiculous. That's what I reckon Joyce's little hissy fit last year was about. He wants Government to take notice and help out "The Flying Kangaroo" before it becomes "The Startled Wombat".
If there was a level playing field I'd say "push off Joysee" but there isn't and that's the problem. However, while I can understand the problems they're facing, ripping off passengers (by over pricing surcharges) is not on and that needs to be sorted...
Kind Regards, :yo:
Panopticon
Resources Used:
http://www.choice.com.au/media-and-news/consumer-news/news/qantas-surcharge-rip-off.aspx
http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2012/s3508571.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-18/qantas-accused-of-credit-card-rip-off/4019762
http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/please-explain-letter-to-qantas-20111029-1mp8y.html
http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/airline-that-stops-a-nation-20111029-1mpgc.html
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/qsa1992120/
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/qantas-will-sack-500-staff-to-save-money/story-e6freuzr-1226362874656
http://www.twu.com.au/home/media/qantas-job-cuts-will-have-tragic-consequences-for-/
http://www.twu.com.au/home/media/latest-qantas-announcement-a-road-map-to-break-up-/
http://www.rateinflation.com/inflation-rate/australia-historical-inflation-rate.php?form=ausir