Anne Urquhart (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I inform the chamber that Senator Ciccone will also sponsor the motion. At the request of Senators Sheldon, Gallacher, Sterle, Bilyk, Patrick and Ciccone, I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) on 29 March 2020 the Prime Minister announced that JobKeeper 'is about keeping the connection between the employer and the employee and keeping people in their jobs', and

(ii) on 21 July 2020 Qantas Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce said to the Australian Financial Review that the extension of JobKeeper was 'fantastic for our people and provides them with certainty';

(b) further notes that despite receiving over $500 million in taxpayer support, including JobKeeper payments to keep employees connected to the company, Qantas intends to outsource 2,500 ramp, ground and cleaning staff and replace them with outsourced, cheaper labour;

(c) recognises that:

(i) the work of these 2,500 employees is still being carried out and will likely now be done on lower rates and conditions,

(ii) Qantas has used the pandemic as cover to implement a long-term plan to further outsource labour, and

(iii) standards in safety and security will be lowered if Qantas outsources its entire ground operations;

(d) calls on Qantas to reverse its decision to outsource the jobs of the 2,500 hardworking Australians; and

(e) calls on the Federal Government to develop a national aviation plan.

Question agreed to.