Qantas ground workers to strike over pay and conditions next week

By Alasdair Pal

SYDNEY, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Qantas ground workers who handle freight and its QantasLink regional flights will strike over pay and working conditions next week, the Transport Workers Union said on Friday.

Workers will strike for a 24-hour period on Wednesday in Victoria state and Thursday in the rest of the country, the union said in a statement.

"Workers do not take this action lightly. Any disruption to freight, including Australia Post shipments, sits solely at the feet of Qantas management and its brutal disregard for customers and the workforce," TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine said.

"We remain committed to reaching an agreement with our Qantas Ground Services employees that includes annual pay rises for our people," a spokesperson for Qantas said in a statement.

Qantas outsourced the jobs of more than 1,800 ground workers in Australia who handled its broader network during the COVID-19 pandemic, in action later deemed illegal. A court last year ordered the airline to pay a record fine of A$90 million ($64.03 million) over the matter.

($1 = 1.4057 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Alasdair Pal in Sydney; Editing by Jamie Freed and Christopher Cushing)