A Sydney courthouse teemed with frustration when a judge deferred a landmark decision, a mere few hours before Qantas representatives were due to face scrutiny at the airline’s annual general gathering.
At the heart of the upheaval is Qantas battling accusations of unlawful conduct in its handling of health and safety representative Theo Seremetidis. Seremetidis had voiced concerns about sanitization procedures on aircraft arriving from China in the early days of the Covid-19 outbreak.
NSW District Court Judge David Russell was anticipated to reveal his verdict on Friday, approximately one year after the hearing’s initial commencement. The legal proceedings, unprecedented in Australia, seek to critically evaluate Qantas’ actions and determine if the airline jeopardized its staff by neglecting appropriate workplace health and safety protocols.
Yet, Judge Russell announced that he wouldn’t be releasing his decision due to an eleventh-hour revelation. He had just received a Fair Work Ombudsman judgment, handed just four days prior, which, he noted, involved “some key issues in the present proceedings.”
Discontent filled the courtroom, especially among the waiting members of the Transport Workers Union, the aggrieved Mr. Seremetidis, and their respective backers at Judge’s Russell decision to delay.
Equating the latest judgment’s ambiguity to a “Christmas pudding, in that there’s something in it for everybody,” Judge Russell stressed his inability to make a fair ruling without thoroughly considering it.
Following the court proceedings, TWU national secretary Michael Kaine, vocalized his criticism of Qantas, whose “exploits have been laid bare.” Yet, he acknowledged that executive chairman Richard Goyder would likely be “breathing a sigh of relief” considering the lack of resolution.
Kaine criticized Qantas for belittling workers who were advocating for their own safety and that of the Australian flying public, expressing lose trust in a company once regarded trustworthy. He hoped the delayed judgment would lead Mr. Goyder to hasten his planned departure.
“Illegally sacked” workers and astounded shareholders resonated with labor senator Tony Sheldon’s appeal for Mr. Goyder’s immediate resignation.
The court found out that Qantas had sidelined Mr. Seremetidis as the pandemic reared its head in 2020. The company did so amid co-workers’ growing fears of contracting Covid-19 after clearing planes arriving from China. Beginning his tenure with Qantas in 2014, Mr. Seremetidis worked as ground crew fleet presentation at Sydney international airport.
Qantas stated that Mr. Seremetidis was precluded from work as they were investigating his “failing to comply with our Standards of Conduct policy, including allegations of attempting to incite unprotected industrial action.”
The airline pointed out that there wasn’t a single positive COVID case on their return flights from China and reiterated its commitment to health and safety, encouraging its employees to express their concerns through legal channels.
