Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I sit here and wonder sometimes how it all gets to this, but unfortunately that is the game we are in. Politicians are given five minutes to get out there and defend the government, so we have to listen to all sorts of nonsense. But I would like to come back to the issue at hand. I would like to address the answers to questions given by Ministers Johnston and Sinodinos today.

I would like to take a minute to put a personal slant on this. In my past life as an organiser with the Transport Workers Union after my trucking career finished, I got to organise at Qantas. I organised Qantas flight catering with some 400-odd employees in Perth. I also organised the Qantas Chairman's Lounge employees. My heart goes out to Qantas employees. When I think of the 5,000 full-time-equivalent jobs that Qantas announced last Thursday would be lost, the first thing I think is that it is not 5,000—because Qantas has myriad part-time and casual employees. So when they say 5,000 full-time jobs, I have no idea how many people will be affected.

A generic email was sent to all of us by Qantas. It was from a fellow by the name of Andrew Parker, Group Executive Government and International Affairs, who virtually did the standard, 'Dear Senator, Mr Joyce wants you to know things are pretty crook and this is what might happen.' I wrote back to Mr Parker straightaway—and I want to quote my actual words because I want to personalise the thought and the pain of the Qantas workers and the uncertainty of who might go when and where. I said: 'Thanks, Andrew. I have read the Qantas statement and now ask if would you please supply me with a very specific and detailed breakdown of where within the Qantas groups the jobs will go—and what number and when.' I then went on to say: 'Would you also provide me with a comprehensive list of all international and domestic routes that will be slashed and/or replaced with Jetstar or just dropped altogether? Awaiting your reply, Senator Glenn Sterle.' I am still waiting.

You see, this is what brings me round to the Qantas workers and not to the ridiculous politics that gets played in this and the other chamber about who has got the biggest, hairiest chest. I do care about these jobs. I want to know what is going on. My thoughts about the CEO's position, the board and the chairman are very well documented. But I am going to be above that today because I want to see Australian jobs saved. I think it is extremely important that we do everything we can to give our national carrier the opportunity to survive its myriad problems, a number of those problems having arisen from the shocking decisions made by management over the last few years.

But let's not forget what the Qantas Sale Act addressed. It set out that the principal maintenance, catering, head office and other operations must stay in Australia. On the subject of jobs going, I will tell you what happened when I was organising the Qantas flight catering in Perth. This may come as a shock, but when Qantas used to fly direct to Denpasar in Bali, management took the decision that it was cheaper to get the catering done in Denpasar, where the health and safety standards were nowhere near the standard of the Australian operations. If they could double cater from Denpasar back to Perth then up to Denpasar, the people on the planes were thinking, 'We're eating Qantas food made by Qantas workers to Australian standards.' But that was bulldust. It was nowhere near Australian standards.

I fear that there will be a heck of a lot more than the 5,000 jobs that will go—and they will go overseas. But it is important for Australians to understand the deviousness of that suggestion of 5,000 jobs. It was plucked out of the air. No-one can tell me where they are going to come from. The jobs will come back. They will come back. They will not all be Australian, but I guarantee they will be contracted out. If Australians think that they are purchasing Australian food of Australian quality and made to Australian standards, they should think again—because Indonesia is only a couple of hours flight away.

I am disgusted at some of the quality of the argument here and at the insincerity of the Abbot government saying how wonderful they are going to be by letting Qantas break up the international from the domestic. This is about Australian jobs, Australian apprenticeships and Australian kids having a future in our aviation industry. (Time expired)

Question agreed to.