Qantas union feud reaches new heights, outraged workers set to crash shareholder meeting after record vote

Angry Qantas workers are set to gatecrash the airline’s first shareholder grilling since its board copped a record protest vote against executive pay.

Friday’s annual general meeting will be the first for new chairman John Mullen after his predecessor, Richard Goyder, grabbed a parachute and jumped out the emergency exit following a disastrous year for the Flying Kangaroo.

The airline’s brand was tarnished by findings it illegally outsourced jobs, sold tickets to already-cancelled flights and unlawfully stood down a worker for raising COVID-19 concerns.

Concerned by Qantas’s governance and a $21.4 million pay package for former CEO Alan Joyce, disgruntled shareholders voted 83 per cent to shoot down the company’s executive pay report at last year’s meeting.

Faced with a possible board spill if it is voted down again, the board is hoping it has done enough to convince shareholders it has turned a corner.

“The message was clear,” Qantas said in the cover letter to its latest remuneration report, noting shareholders’ anger.

“The Remuneration Committee has engaged with and listened to the concerns of shareholders and their advisors.”

Qantas has since clawed back more than $9 billion of Mr Joyce’s bonuses and implemented a slew of other recommendations from a review into its corporate governance.

Indications suggest the board will avoid another embarrassing vote against it.

Influential proxy advisers, including the Australian Shareholders’ Association and Glass Lewis, have recommended shareholders vote in favour of the remuneration report and the re-election of board members.

“The governance report indicated there were significant deficiencies in the governance, management and remuneration structure of the organisation,” the Australian Shareholders’ Association said.

“We are pleased to see these issues being addressed.”

Qantas’s profitability took a hit as it deepened investment in improving the customer experience — spending $230 million upgrading its airport lounges, food and beverage offerings, digital systems, call centres and loyalty programs.

But the board is braced for yet more pushback, with simmering dissatisfaction among shareholders that it did not claw back enough of Mr Joyce’s pay and disgruntled union workers set to gatecrash the AGM in Hobart.

Before the meeting, hundreds of employees will down tools across all major Australian airports.

They are after a pay rise of five per cent per year, with a 15 per cent first-year increase to compensate for three and a half years of “wage freezes and as an industry catch-up payment”, and claim Qantas has refused to up its initial offer of three per cent per year.

The unions involved said the stoppages would disrupt the scheduled flow of air traffic across affected airports, but Qantas said it had plans in place to ensure there would be no impact to customers.

In a further test of its reputation, Qantas has also been accused of greenwashing by the Environmental Defenders Office, which has complained to the consumer watchdog that it misled customers over emissions offset claims.