Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Nearly everyone in this chamber has taken a flight to be here, today or yesterday, but how many have considered the conditions of the aviation workers who make that possible?

I recently met with Transport Workers' Union members who told me what's really happening behind the scenes. While airline CEOs rake in millions, the actual workers are unsafe, overworked and underpaid. A pilot told me he fears flying into regional airports servicing mines because air traffic isn't properly managed. There aren't enough controllers, and the regulator, CASA, refuses to take responsibility. Ground crews still stuck on contracts after years in the job told me that, if they speak up for secure work, they are threatened with having their jobs outsourced. This is completely against closing loopholes standards passed a couple of years ago which intended to stop this. A security guard described working 60 hour weeks just to get by, copping abuse from the public every day on wages not much higher than a teenager in their first job at Macca's. Cabin crew face higher risk of suicide and cancer than the rest of us while being forced into longer shifts with shorter breaks as airlines extort higher profits.

This airline greed doesn't just harm workers; it puts every passenger at risk. Labor could fix this with a safe and secure skies commission to lift safety standards and cap executive pay. Labor should listen to the Transport Workers' Union and show it stands with workers and not millionaire CEOs. The public are at risk catching an aeroplane in this country because Labor will not support the workers that keep it safe.