Following the Fair Work Commission conciliation, it was agreed the Union would ask members whether they’d like to continue working 6 day weeks in return for eventual longer breaks or follow a 5 on 2 off style roster. Your average ratio of workdays to days off should come out roughly equal to the normal calendar ratio of weekdays to weekends.

ON FRIDAY WE EMAILED ALL AFFECTED MEMBERS AND ASKED THEM TO LET US KNOW WHICH OPTION THEY PREFERRED.

In our email we asked members:

Please click on one of the statements below to identify which option you’d prefer: 

a. I want to continue working 6 day weeks in return for eventual long breaks
b. I want to follow a 5 on 2 off style roster

IF YOU DID NOT GET THE EMAIL PLEASE CONTACT THOMAS RUSSELL ON trussell@usu.org.au

Qantas said it can’t be done, that option B style rosters cannot be generated, but option B style was standard for check-in for quite some time, so these rosters can definitely be generated. 

The purpose of this poll is to obtain responses to present to the roster committee so the Union can get this data and present it to make sure Qantas will know what members really want. 

*Please note that RDO accruals are not disputed by any party. 

If members do not want 6 on 2 off rostering, now is the chance to speak up. Staff are free to argue a 5 on 2 off pattern is better if the long breaks promised for working 6 day weeks are not happening. Qantas claims the constant 6 day weeks are required to achieve rotation, but with so many operational shift/line changes there is natural rotation that occurs anyway. Many full timers have expressed frustration at loss of weekend work, so what is the point of so many 6 day weeks to achieve rotation with little payoff.

When the work itself provides a form of rotation due to operational shift changes and there is very little weekend work to lose, why keep working 6 day weeks in return for weekend work opportunities or to earn 4 day breaks that for many are uncertain or not frequent enough to justify the resulting fatigue. 

Finally, since Qantas went into the commission claiming that members had chosen the current rosters (predominantly made of 6 day weeks) it alleged the Union had no place to be disputing them. Only with member’s feedback can we gain material to respond with. 

If you have any questions about this email or need any assistance at work, please contact your USU Organiser Thomas Russell on 0419 761 320 or via email at trussell@usu.org.au