Qantas Employment Relations dispute 2008

international airlines.ThreatsThreat of competition in domestic and international market.Further increases in fuel costs.Increases in government regulation.Depreciation of the Australian dollar.Weakening economic conditions/recession. Security/terrorist issues.Identify the issue with causes and impacts The Engineers Dispute involved Qantas management and the maintenance staff. This dispute was caused by wage demands and management policy outsourcing maintenance work overseas. The Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) were seeking a 5% wage increase stating that 3% wasn't good enough when the Australian average wage had been increasing by 4.6%. Qantas claiming that fuel is almost out of control, and that all airlines around the world were making major changes to their business, and they have to do the same. Engineers were extremely angered over their exclusion in talks over this matter, resulting in them to take action, seeking support from their unions to successfully begin the dispute resolution process on their behalf. As a result, the engineer workers took overt industrial action such as pickets, strikes, and work-to-rule to demonstrate their grievances. As they refused to work, hundreds of flights were affected, delaying passengers all around the world. This not only affected the passengers but also Qantas as it was left short staffed unable to fulfil its services. Impact on StakeholdersIn this case, all stakeholders had a vested interest in resolving the industrial conflict as quickly as possible as it is an extremely expensive exercise for all parties involved. Employees lost wages while employers lost profits and potential customers. Suppliers lost revenue as they sold less to Qantas. And finally customers were left flightless and angered as they were left stranded due to the grounding both international and domestic flights. Overall, this is a continuous cycle with Qantas ultimately losing profits. Outline specific procedures or instruments used to resolve/attempt to resolve dispute/conflictQantas started using managers, all of whom it has said are qualified aircraft engineers, to plug the gaps when engineer workers walk off the job, however the union was concerned at the safety compliance of those managers and it led to a shift in perception that Qantas had reduced its commitment to safety. Through the implementation of communication systems, and flexible working conditions they were able to resolve the engineers depute.Qantas ensured that there were effective communication systems. Effective communication helped employees feel that they were contributing their ideas to the organisation leading to an increase in worker morale and productivity. The communications took the form of both formal and informal communications, including regular meetings, emails, newsletters and social gatherings. In May 2009, Qantas announced that, after successfully negotiating flexible work practices with its engineering employees in Brisbane, it would bring Airbus A330 Heavy Maintenance onshore, securing the future of 500 engineering jobs in Australia.                                                                                                                                                                                   Examine the final outcome and evaluate the effectiveness of the outcomeAfter 2 years of industrial disputes and intensive negotiations, maintenance workers finally secured a new EBA in June 2010. The new  EBA delivered improved efficiency for Qantas and a 4.6% annual wage increase and improvements to superannuation. The agreement also secured all previous worker entitlements including sick leave and redundancy provisions and did not contain any mandatory overtime banks. This will bring in significant improvements to the way safety is managed within the airline by addressing those issues critical to its maintenance. As a result, employees were able to increase their pay and working conditions, with minimal job losses as well as, retaining engineer positions from being outsourced. It ensured that engineers can take rest periods after working overnight, as well as professional development programs to ensure engineers remain at "the cutting edge of aviation technology". It is clear that flexibility is the key to Qantas’s employment relations and overall success. By responding quickly to changing influences on employment relations, Qantas has managed to further its organisational goals while maintaining an effective relationship with its employees. Qantas must continue to respond to the changing business environment if the company is to maintain its employment relations success in the future.