Illegally sacked Qantas workers are struggling to pay the bills while they wait for a $160 million payout.
Australia’s largest airline outsourced the work of more than 1800 baggage handlers, cleaners and ground staff in 2020, in a move the Federal Court ruled was designed to curb union bargaining power in wage negotiations.
The airline was ordered to pay $120 million in compensation plus an historic $90 million penalty, of which $40 million is to be distributed among workers.
But almost six years after they were unlawfully sacked, the former Qantas employees still have no clarity about when they will receive a share of the $160 million they are owed.
A deadline to detail payment distributions could not be met, the court was told on Wednesday.
Former Qantas ramp supervisor Don Dixon has not worked since he was illegally stood down.
“A lot of people have financial situations that are terrible,” he said outside the Federal Court.
“The disappointing part is it doesn’t look like it’s going to finish anytime soon, and that’s going to be more stress, more problems for everyone.”
Justice Michael Lee criticised the handling of the compensation distribution on Wednesday after being asked to extend the key deadline at “one minute to midnight”.
“This application has caused me some perturbation,” he said.
Law firm Maurice Blackburn, which is administering the $120 million fund established in early 2025, asked for the extension after informing the court it would not be able to meet the July 31 deadline.
The firm brought the class action against Qantas on behalf of the 1820 workers sacked during the pandemic.
The distribution of the larger compensation pool will inform how much workers are allocated from the separate $40 million fund.
Justice Lee said it was not clear why the application had been made so close to the deadline, nor why it had been made to his chambers rather than in open court.
“I find that troubling,” he said.
“Court orders are not like the traffic lights in Palermo. They are not there merely to be observed when it is thought convenient to do so.”
Applications affecting the rights and expectations of sacked workers should be dealt with openly, the judge noted.
“There are workers who say they undertook everything asked of them and remain profoundly distressed by the delay,” he said.
Causes of the delay include the number of affected workers, volume of medical examinations, and a need to review thousands of documents, a barrister for Maurice Blackburn told the court.
The court-imposed deadline to list payment distributions should be immediately extended, Adam Hochroth SC argued.
He noted he was concerned there was considerable frustration from former Qantas workers about the delays.
“Those persons are keen for an explanation,” he said.
But Justice Lee said he would not determine the matter in a hurry, paving the way for the law firm to breach the court order.
Instead, he will preside over a hearing of the application on August 6.
Mr Dixon said unlawfully sacked workers haven’t been provided any clarity about how much compensation they may receive or how the amount is being calculated.
“It’s (been) six years for the workers, and it just keeps going,” he said outside court.
“People just want it to end. And today, I think we’re a step closer.”
After working for Qantas for 20 years, Mr Dixon was forced into an early retirement when his role was outsourced during the pandemic.
Any optimism he held at the beginning of the legal fight has been tempered by watching the proceedings unfold over the years.
“It would have been nice to be informed that the legal wheel turns extremely slow,” he said.
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