Australia

Qantas Fined Record A$90M for Illegal Pandemic Layoffs

AUG 18 2025·Updated AUG 24 2025

Story

Above: A Qantas Boeing 737 aircraft takes off from Sydney International Airport on Aug. 18, 2025. Image credit: David Gray/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

Australian Federal Court Justice Michael Lee fined Qantas Airways 90 million Australian dollars ($58.4 million) Monday for illegally firing 1,820 ground staff during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The move is the largest penalty ever imposed by a court for violations of Australia's labor laws.
CNN
Daily Mail
The court ruled that Qantas outsourced baggage handler and cleaner jobs at Australian airports in late 2020 to prevent staff from exercising their workplace rights and unionizing, in breach of Australia's Fair Work Act.
ap
Daily Mail
Justice Lee ordered 50 million Australian dollars of the penalty to be paid directly to the Transport Workers Union, which brought the case against Qantas, while the remaining 40 million will be allocated at a later hearing.
Simple Flying
The Sydney Morning Herald
The fine comes in addition to 120 million dollars in compensation that Qantas had already agreed to pay its former employees after seven High Court judges unanimously rejected the airline's appeal against the judgment.
RFI
ABC Australia
Justice Lee also criticized Qantas for showing the "wrong kind of sorry," stating that the airline's regret more likely reflected damage to the company rather than genuine remorse for harm caused to workers.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
www.ft.com
Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson apologized to the 1,820 ground handling employees and their families, acknowledging that the outsourcing decision caused "genuine hardship" during an uncertain time in the pandemic.
UPI
The Australian

Sources Split

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The Spin

Establishment-critical narrative

This record-breaking penalty sends a clear message that corporate Australia can't break labor laws and expect to get away with it. The Transport Workers Union took on a behemoth airline and won, proving that even the most powerful employers will be held accountable for illegal conduct. Justice prevailed for 1,820 workers who were callously dismissed during the pandemic.

Transport Workers' Union

Pro-establishment narrative

Qantas made necessary commercial decisions during an unprecedented crisis when the airline was facing potential bankruptcy and the aviation industry had come to a standstill. The company has sincerely apologized and worked hard over the past 18 months to change operations and rebuild trust with employees and customers. This was a blatant union shakedown of Qantas.