University of Sydney experts comment on Qantas' dispute strategy

Several UoS specialists have provided their own insight into the way the Qantas industrial battle is going.

Dr John Buchanan is an leading commentator on industrial relations, labour market issues, workplace restructuring, employment conditions and union policy:

“The key challenge now is that while Qantas may have won the battle, will they win the war? The major unresolved issue is the new business model and whether it corrupts the trust of customers and stakeholders.”

Professor Ron McCallum is an expert in industrial relations and employment law, collective employee relations and trade union law:

“Qantas has won, this is victory. It will not be possible for the arbitration process to prevent Qantas from contracting out work overseas and doing all the things that can keep jobs here secure. It cannot stop Qantas from operating its business plan, which is what it was trying to do.”

Associate Professor Marian Baird is an expert in the fields of regulation of work, industrial relations and human resource management: 

“This is this decade’s watershed industrial relations dispute. The dispute has involved strategic positioning by both sides. Apart from the business strategy of QANTAS, the issue is about the fundamental tension in the employment relationship – that between management control and union representation. The results of this dispute are likely to extend beyond this particular event to industrial relations policy more broadly.”

Professor Joellen Riley is an expert in employment and labour law, equity and executive employment: 

Australia’s current system of enterprise bargaining permits, and to some extent even encourages, these kinds of bargaining strategies. Qantas is playing the game within the rules, as any business is entitled to do. Protected industrial action – and that includes lock-outs by employers as well as the various tactics of the unions – is permitted, and there is no way of getting independent arbitration of an interests disputes unless the industrial action causes some kind of crisis. So if you can’t agree to a solution, and want arbitration, you need to manufacture a crisis. It is our system of industrial laws that has created this situation.

Dr Stuart Rosewarne is an expert on international political economy, the nature of work, and political economics, commenting on the economic repercussions of the situation:

“The move by Qantas is a dangerous game of brinkmanship which could have severe implications not only for the future competitive position of Qantas airlines, but also more generally for the Australian tourism industry”

Professor Charles Areni is an expert in marketing and brand management, commenting on the effect of the dispute on the viability of the Qantas brand:

“While in the short term it may suffer, in the long run the Qantas brand will probably be fine. Research suggests that brands that have long track records are incredibly resilient to this sort of dispute. Qantas has an advantage over most other strong brands and that it’s an Australian icon, which will give it even more resilience than an otherwise strong brand would have.”