Alan Joyce to appear before the senate at a cost of living inquiry

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has been called to a parliamentary inquiry where he will be questioned about the group’s role in impacting cost of living pressures.

Joyce will appear in parliament on Monday, only four days after the group announced it has achieved a $1.74b profit after tax. This will be the first time in nine years that the CEO will appear before the senate.

Joyce is the only CEO of an ASX-listed company called to appear amid the recent rise in cost of living pressures.

Virgin Australia was represented at this inquiry by Christian Bennett, the airline’s corporate head of corporate affairs, and Todd Reynolds, Virgin’s head of government relations, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

A Qantas spokesperson said the government had insisted that Joyce himself attend rather than another of the group’s executives.

“Despite no other company CEO being required to attend, the committee subsequently insisted that Qantas CEO Alan Joyce appear, which he will do,” the spokesman said.

NSW Labor senator and former head of the Transport Workers Union (TWU) Tony Sheldon said that Joyce appearing in parliament is long overdue.

“After almost a decade of evading parliamentary scrutiny, even while receiving a $2.7 billion no-strings-attached bailout from the Morrison government, Mr Joyce has a lot to answer for,” Sheldon said.

“Qantas has transformed from an aviation pioneer, into a pioneer of corporate greed, extracting every last cent possible from its workers, its customers and even the previous federal government.

“Between its war on its workers, price gouging on fares, its shonky credits system and aggressive competitive behaviour, it is high time that Qantas is held to account.”

At the inquiry, a committee will examine if bonuses given within the airline have come at the expense of travellers, alongside Qantas’ COVID credits scheme, which has recently become the subject of a lawsuit.

Leading the suit is Echo Law, which alleges that Qantas customers were entitled to full cash refunds rather than flight credits. The law firm said that these credits were worth significantly less to customers than the refunds they were owed.

The four main allegations towards the national carrier are: It breached its contract with customers by failing to provide cash refunds, it engaged in misleading conduct, it unlawfully benefited from customers by holding a significant amount of customer funds that ought to have been refunded and that it engaged in unconscionable conduct.

The lawsuit comes almost two months after Qantas unveiled a ‘Find my Credit’ tool, which allows travellers to find COVID credits which are up to three years old.

Advertise with us

Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

alan joyce qantas Tony Sheldon Transport Workers Union