QPC Briefing No 11 2025
LH Bargaining Update
At the end of May, Qantas presented the AFAP with a revised position on the Long Haul EA. Disappointingly, the offer marked a significant step backward from where negotiations had been tracking. Rather than building on prior progress, the Company retreated from key areas, proposing a package that reduces overall value for pilots while continuing to pursue major structural changes that remain deeply unpopular.
Following that meeting, we engaged with Qantas again to move discussions forward. This resulted in little meaningful progress. This week, we returned to the table and presented the Company with a more detailed and structured position, one that tackles the operational concerns they raised, while delivering on the priorities that matter most to long haul pilots.
These include:
- Genuine progress for B and C-scale pilots, addressing longstanding equity and career development concerns;
- Stronger fatigue protections, such as consistent night credit application and reduced maximum night flying hours on 787 and A350 fleets and expanded MBTT provisions on 2 and 3 crew back-of-clock operations;
- Pay increases that acknowledge the real-world impact of inflation and cost-of-living pressures;
- Online training pay, extended sign-on time pay and blank-line holder payments.
Throughout this process, we have stayed focused on solutions. Where Qantas has raised specific operational needs, we have listened and responded, but always with the condition that any flexibility from pilots is matched by tangible gains in return.
Importantly, we reminded Qantas that it is they who are seeking structural changes, not the pilot group. The AFAP’s position does not seek to upend existing arrangements, it offers a balanced and fair compromise that addresses fatigue, pay equity, and economic reality.
We also made it clear that dragging this process out serves no one. We reminded the Company that an intractable bargaining determination would likely deliver none of the structural items the Group Leadership Team (GLT) has identified as critical, while pilots would likely receive modest, inflation-aligned increases.
We remain positively engaged in the negotiations but always ready to fight; constructively, strategically, and with resolve to secure a package that delivers real, measurable benefits for long haul pilots. We believe we have proposed a structure that does that, and we will continue to push for an outcome that reflects your value and protects your future.
We will keep you updated as negotiations progress.
Questions and Feedback
For further information regarding LH bargaining or if you have any questions or feedback please contact your AFAP Qantas Pilot Council at qpc@afap.org.au, or the AFAP legal and industrial team of Senior Legal/ Industrial Officer Pat Larkins (patrick@afap.org.au), Senior Industrial Officer Deanna Cain (deanna@afap.org.au) or Executive Director Simon Lutton (simon@afap.org.au).
Regards,
AFAP Qantas Pilot Council
Michael Egan – Chair
Mark Gilmour – Vice-Chair
Rob Close – Secretary
Michael Armessen – Committee Member
David LaPorte – Committee Member
Josh Chalmers – Committee Member