A leading international airline requires executives from the corporate office to take a three-month leave of absence and work full-time as baggage handlers to alleviate a persistent labour shortfall that is delaying flights.
According to a memo to managers from Qantas Airways’ chief operating officer, Colin Hughes, at least 100 volunteers are needed to perform shifts at the airports in Sydney and Melbourne. Tasks include driving the cars that transport bags to planes and between terminals, as well as loading and unloading luggage. The memo states that candidates must be able to lift baggage up to 32 kilograms.
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The need to put executives on the job for months, despite the fact that Qantas headquarters workers have been assisting at airports during holiday rush, highlights the severity of the labour need amid the global tourism rebound. The national airline of Australia cancelled 8.1% of its regularly scheduled domestic flights in June, making it the nation’s least dependable airline.
“To be clear, there is no expectation that you will opt into this role on top of your full-time position,’ Bloomberg quoted Hughes as telling managers. “It’s our singular company focus to support our teams to get our operation back to where it should be.”
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A faster-than-anticipated increase in traffic is straining the world’s ailing aviation industry, and airlines are also suffering from staff absences brought on by Covid.
Tarek Sultan, vice chairman of Agility Public Warehousing Co., said on August 5: “It’s really hard to hire people in this day and age after Covid and we’re really trying to figure out why,” Sultan said on Bloomberg Television. “Nobody has a 100% clear answer. We have to be competitive with our wages, but we also have to look at other ways to improve retention and make this industry a more attractive place to work.”
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Last week, Heathrow laid the responsibility for the unrest plaguing European travel for months on airlines and their ground handlers as demand picks up after the pandemic. In order to compete with companies like Amazon.com Inc. for talent, handlers like Menzies are sometimes not paying enough, according to chief executive officer John Holland-Kaye.
The U.S. Department of Transportation previously made public a proposed rule that, if implemented, would considerably improve consumer safeguards for those looking to get their money back on airline tickets.
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Since the beginning of 2020, the Department has been inundated with complaints from customers who purchased non-refundable tickets but chose not to travel because the airline cancelled or significantly changed their flights, or because they chose not to travel due to pandemic-related factors like health concerns.
A flight that was advertised in a carrier’s computer reservation system at the time of ticket sale but was not operated by the carrier would be considered “cancelled” under the proposal.
(With agency inputs)
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