Most Australian aviation workers fear losing their job when jobkeeper ends, survey finds

Almost three-quarters of aviation workers fear they will be unable to support their families when jobkeeper wage subsidies end in March, according to a new union survey. The survey of 560 aviation workers by the Australian Services Union (ASU) paints a dire picture of the threat of job cuts to those in the sector hardest hit by Covid-19, in which 88% of workers have been stood down and 30% are still not getting any hours. The aviation sector has already lost at least 11,000 jobs, with a further 2,500 ground-handling and cleaning jobs outsourced at Qantas. While the treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, has boasted that 450,000 businesses and 2 million workers have “graduated” off the jobkeeper wage subsidy – the story is different in the aviation sector because international travel remains banned and domestic travel has been hugely disrupted by periodic border closures. With 80,000 people working in the sector and 78% of those surveyed still receiving jobkeeper, the ASU report points to tens of thousands of jobs at risk when wage subsidies expire at the end of March. Jayne Hrdlicka, the CE of Virgin Australia, which has 6,600 employees on jobkeeper after cutting 3,000 jobs, has warned of further cuts if jobkeeper isn’t replaced. The ASU survey found that 82% of aviation workers did not feel their job was secure and 72% were worried about being unable to financially support their family without the jobkeeper payment.<br/>