Qantas pilots lose federal court challenge

10 May 2012, 12:26 pm   -   Source: AAP
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(Getty)

(Getty)

AIPA has lost a challenge to an industrial action ban imposed by Fair Work Australia in the wake of the Qantas fleet grounding.

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Qantas pilots have lost their Federal Court challenge to a ban preventing them from taking industrial action.

The Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA) had challenged the ban imposed by Fair Work Australia (FWA) after a long-running spell of industrial action by Qantas pilots, engineers and ground staff led to the airline's entire fleet being grounded last October.

AIPA had argued the action taken by pilots, which included wearing red ties and making public announcements on board Qantas flights, did not damage the economy and that the ban on industrial action should be overturned.

However, its appeal was dismissed in a full court judgment handed down in the Federal Court in Sydney on Thursday.

Speaking outside court, AIPA vice president Captain Brad Hodson said the union was disappointed but would respect the decision.

"We remain proud of the campaign we've run. Our campaign was not about disrupting the travelling public," Capt Hodson told reporters.

"It's very hard to say that making a public announcement and wearing red ties can damage the economy. We got lumped in with other unions who may well have done that."

AIPA members carried out the industrial action, in part, to try to secure a "Qantas flight/Qantas pilot" clause in their new enterprise agreements.

This would apply to all flights with a Qantas flight code and would ensure a trained Qantas pilot was on board.

"Qantas pilots are going to be here in five, 10 years and (Qantas CEO) Alan Joyce won't," Capt Hodson said.

The union looked forward to the outcome of the Fair Work Act review, he added.

Qantas spokeswoman Olivia Wirth said the airline was pleased with the decision.

"Australians can continue to fly with Qantas with absolute confidence that they will not be disrupted by strikes or industrial action by these three unions," Ms Wirth said in a statement.

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