Qantas sacks baggage handlers over viral video

Qantas sacks baggage handlers over viral video
By James Harrison


Qantas baggage handlers have been stood down after a viral video showed them slamming bags onto a conveyor belt at Melbourne Airport.

The footage, which circulated on TikTok and Twitter, showed the handlers throwing luggage onto the conveyor belt and hurling one bag so hard that its falls off the belt altogether.

The video shows the three men, in hi-vis jackets, smiling as they throw the luggage on the conveyor belt.

“The behaviour in this video is clearly not acceptable, and our contracted ground handler is conducting an urgent investigation,” a Qantas spokesperson told The Guardian.

The Guardian reported that in the future the men will not be working on Qantas flights.

Some Twitter users weren’t surprised by the behaviour, with others being more sympathetic to the handlers.

A spokesperson for Swissport, which operates part of Qantas’ baggage handling, said: “Swissport trains and manages all staff to handle customer possessions with care and diligence.

“The actions of staff in the video appear to have contravened those service level standards.

“As a result, the staff in question have been stood down pending an urgent investigation.”

The Swissport chief executive, Brad Moore, wrote to staff saying “the behaviours in the video let all of us down”.

“Disrespectful behaviour to our customer luggage and personal effects will not be tolerated and will result in serious disciplinary action.

“Rest assured this matter will be investigated with urgency with appropriate follow-up action. The unacceptable behaviour of a few individuals will not go unchecked nor be allowed to tarnish the quality work of our whole team.”

Qantas came under fire earlier in the year for high rates of mishandled baggage and poor workplace practices.

One baggage handler claimed in July that one in ten pieces of luggage were getting lost or weren’t getting loaded onto domestic flights.

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