EA 13 Negotiations Start With ASU Setting The Agenda

Your ASU National Negotiating Team held its first meeting with Qantas management to officially start negotiations for our new ASU Qantas EBA13.

Disappointingly, Qantas wasn’t prepared with its log of claims. They’ve confirmed it may take two or more meetings to have one ready. What they did confirm, however, is their push for changes under the Roster Improvement Plan (RIP)—something they’ve been promoting at ports for months.

Our message to Qantas remains clear:

1. We won’t trade away long-held rostering and overtime conditions.
2. If Qantas can improve rostering, they should do it now—without using it as leverage for cuts to staff conditions.

The devil is in the details—we encourage all members to scrutinise any claims management carefully puts forward.

ASU members are campaigning for better working conditions!

ASU members have endorsed the following overarching log of claims for our negotiations. It is important to note that we will flesh out these claims in much more detail throughout the negotiations, and your national negotiating team is already busy presenting our key arguments to management.

1. Wage increases of 5% per annum that value our work, enable us to keep up with the rising costs of living and improve overtime and penalty provisions.
2. Increase and protect superannuation contributions by embedding stronger provisions in the EA.
3. Improve rostering and leave arrangements to ensure fairness, support work/life balance, and align with best safety practices.
4. Guarantee job security for all ASU-covered workers.
5. Enhance the classification structure to properly recognise and reward Qantas employees' skills and professional expertise.
6. Establish a transparent and agreed-upon process with the ASU for creating and filling full-time vacancies, including setting minimum full-time positions at each port and ensuring proper backfilling for temporary assignments.
7. Close the gender pay gap by implementing meaningful and practical steps to achieve fairness, equity, and workplace equality for women.
8. Ensure ASU delegates and HSRs are recognised and respected so they can effectively represent members in the workplace.
9. Adopt a trauma-informed approach for victim-survivors by ensuring NDAs apply only when requested by the victim-survivor—not by Qantas or the perpetrator.
10. Formalise current ‘side letter’ arrangements within the EA.
11. Strengthen conditions and processes for injured workers to ensure fair treatment and support.
12. Improve payroll processes to enhance accuracy and reliability.
13. Close loopholes and correct drafting issues in the agreement.
14. Protect and improve all existing terms and conditions.
15. Any other matter that arises during bargaining.

We will continue to update members after each bargaining meeting, and it’s important that you stay informed as negotiations progress. For any further information, please contact your local ASU delegates or your ASU organiser.

It’s more important that you and your colleagues be members of your union, the Australian Services Union, to strengthen our position in these negotiations. Join today at https://asujoin.asn.au/

 Your negotiation negotiating team for EA 13

If you require any support or additional information, please contact your local ASU delegates or ASU organiser at: