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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Labour row grounds Qantas flights | Labour row grounds Qantas flights |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The Australian airline Qantas is to ground all international and domestic flights with immediate effect due to an industrial dispute. | The Australian airline Qantas is to ground all international and domestic flights with immediate effect due to an industrial dispute. |
| A href="http://www.qantas.com.au/regions/dyn/au/publicaffairs/details?ArticleID=2011/oct11/5218" title="Qantas statement" >statement said all employees involved in the strike would be locked out from Monday evening and flights grounded from 0600 GMT on Saturday. | |
| Aircraft currently in the air will complete their flights, but there will be no further departures. | Aircraft currently in the air will complete their flights, but there will be no further departures. |
| Chief executive Alan Joyce called his decision "unbelievable". | |
| The airline has been hit by a series of costly strikes. | The airline has been hit by a series of costly strikes. |
| Baggage handlers, engineers and pilots have been involved in the action costing the company A$15m (US$16m) a week. | Baggage handlers, engineers and pilots have been involved in the action costing the company A$15m (US$16m) a week. |
| Total costs are estimated at A$68m, the company said. | Total costs are estimated at A$68m, the company said. |
| The airline issued a statement on its Facebook page saying customers booked on Qantas flights should not go to the airport until further notice. The airline said a full refund would be available to those affected by the grounding. | |
| Tensions between the unions and the Qantas management started in August after the airline announced a restructuring and outsourcing plan. | Tensions between the unions and the Qantas management started in August after the airline announced a restructuring and outsourcing plan. |
| The union members have voiced their concerns against the proposal, saying it would result in job cuts at the airline's Australian operations. | The union members have voiced their concerns against the proposal, saying it would result in job cuts at the airline's Australian operations. |
| Government 'concern' | |
| The Australian minister for transport, Anthony Albanese, said the government would take action to intervene in the dispute. | |
| "We are very concerned about Qantas' actions, of which we were notified only mid-afternoon, with no advance notice from Qantas at any stage," he said. | |
| "The government is making an urgent application to Fair Work Australia [an industrial court] to terminate all industrial action at Qantas. This will be aimed at both actions by unions and by Qantas management." | |
| Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce announced the grounding of the airline on Saturday: "The airline will be grounded as long as it takes to reach a conclusion on this." | |
| He said that he would not take "the easy way out" and agree to union demands. "That would destroy Qantas in the long term." | He said that he would not take "the easy way out" and agree to union demands. "That would destroy Qantas in the long term." |
| "I'm actually taking the bold decision, an unbelievable decision, a very hard decision, to ground this airline." | "I'm actually taking the bold decision, an unbelievable decision, a very hard decision, to ground this airline." |
| Mr Joyce said he made the decision early Saturday and then gained the approval of the Qantas board. | |
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