Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson told investors at its annual meeting in Hobart that the embattled airline is succeeding in its campaign to win back the hearts of customers as the airline assured travellers that a strike by hundreds of its engineers will not disrupt services.
“I acknowledge we do not always get it right but the feedback from customers and what we hear when travelling suggests we have turned the corner,” Hudson said in her address to shareholders.
Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson is now dealing with compensation claims for illegally sacked employees but says the airline is winning over customers.Credit: Eamon Gallagher
The stock hit a record high of $8 on Friday morning after the airline offered a market update saying trading for the December half year continues to be in line with expectations, with Jetstar’s domestic business outperforming due to stronger than anticipated demand.
It follows a controversial year that included a $120 million settlement with the ACCC after misleading customers by selling tickets on cancelled flights, and a court decision this week that will see the group pay as much as $100 million compensation for illegally sacking 1700 ground handlers during the pandemic.
“There is no pretending that last year was anything other than a very difficult year for Qantas,” chairman John Mullen told investors. But he assured investors that the issues responsible for a disastrous year that cost the airline its chairman, and the early departure of its former CEO, are being comprehensively addressed.
Loading
“While in no way shying away from the past, however it is time now to put this period behind us and to move on, to look forward to the future and to focus on the exciting opportunities that lie ahead for Qantas.”
Meanwhile, the Electrical Trades Union says hundreds of Qantas engineers are stepping up industrial action across all major Australian airports on Friday as workers’ calls for fair pay have been ignored.
“Around 600 line maintenance engineers, responsible for critical tasks like towing and marshalling aircraft and conducting final safety checks before departure, will down tools for two four-hour stoppages across airports including Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart,” it said.
