So as to make ends meet, so management claims, Qantas hopes to tap into the inexpensive labour resources in Asia.
Do our Asian neighbours actually welcome this? Who benefits? Qantas shareholders presumably, not the existing Qantas staff.
There is in fact talk of a reduction in staff in Qantas International and even across the board. Meaningful progress could be made if Qantas staff became part-owners of the businesses they work in. Governance rights to match should be extended in the form of enterprise councils and board representation. Other airlines have flourished following a staff take-over. The combination of equity and governance participation, through enterprise councils and representation at board level, will create productivity, flexibility and loyalty.
The research in this area is convincing. Regrettably, Australia is far behind most other developed countries in this respect. The adversarial IR culture lingers on. We are not making progress here. The Australian executive class, still wedded firmly to managerial prerogative, is frightened of employee ownership and workplace democracy.
Yes, Australian jobs could be saved here, but not just that. A staff takeover of Qantas could provide a revolution that would be a trendsetter for years to come. Any suitable investors around to assist financially?
Klaas Woldring
