Qantas files High Court appeal over illegal outsourcing ruling

Qantas has again filed an appeal to overturn a ruling that said its decision to outsource 2,000 ground staff was an illegal breach of the Fair Work Act, after the Federal Court upheld the ruling last month. The airline has filed an application for leave to appeal with the High Court of Australia, just weeks after losing its first appeal attempt. According to the TWU, which has been battling Qantas in court over the matter since 2020, the application was made to coincide with the first day of “preliminary” roundtable discussions about compensation for the affected workers. In early 2021, Qantas moved to outsource ground handling operations at the 10 Australian airports where it was still running them in-house, including Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne. This decision resulted in the 2,000 roles being made redundant. The TWU brought Qantas to court over the decision, and in August 2021, the Federal Court ruled that Qantas had violated section 341B of the Fair Work Act, which protects employees’ rights to bargain and take protected industrial action.<br/>