Unlawfully sacked Qantas workers to wait almost six years for compensation

More than 1800 former Qantas workers who were unlawfully sacked by the airline more than five years ago face an even longer wait to receive the $160 million they are owed after the law firm managing the process flagged it would ask the court for more time.Maurice Blackburn has notified the affected workers that it will seek to push back a key milestone in the process from Federal Court Justice Michael Lee’s deadline of July 31 to at least October this year.Qantas unlawfully made more than 1800 ground staff redundant during the pandemic and outsourced their jobs.APThat means the workers, who have previously told this masthead about battling with periods of unemployment and trauma from their sacking, will have waited almost six years since the layoffs were announced for their full compensation.In an email sent to the workers last week, Maurice Blackburn said it needed more time to work out how much individual workers were owed from a $120 million pool of compensation and would ask the Federal Court for more time at a hearing on Wednesday.“As we continue to finalise the scheme, final amounts to be paid to each [of the] affected workers have not been finalised, and Maurice Blackburn is not yet able to provide the list,” reads the email, seen by this masthead.Former Qantas employee Tony Mora has been devastated by the delay.In addition to the $120 million in compensation the workers are entitled to, Justice Michael Lee in August 2025 imposed a $90 million penalty on Qantas. He found the company was motivated in part by trying to prevent the workers from exercising their lawful right to take industrial action to bargain for higher wages. Qantas fought the case, which was first filed in 2020, all the way to the High Court, delaying the payouts for years. It eventually apologised in what Lee suggested was a half-hearted manner.The workers’ union, the Transport Workers Union, which funded the case, will get $50 million of that penalty, while $40 million will go to the affected ex-employees. Lee had ordered the $40 million to be paid by July, but the Federal Court first needs to know how much each individual employee gets under the $120 million compensation scheme being managed by Maurice Blackburn to apportion the smaller sum.The nearly 2000 former Qantas workers, mostly ground crew, baggage handlers and cleaners, were ultimately made redundant in 2021 under chief executive Alan Joyce’s leadership, though he did not personally make the decision. Under the court-approved process, economic and non-economic losses are being calculated separately. The collection of economic loss data is complete, but payment won’t occur until the non-economic loss assessment is completed as well.Brisbane-based Tony Mora, who had worked as a truck driver and cabin cleaner, said the news from Maurice Blackburn was “the latest jab in the heart”.“I’m so frustrated now and disheartened because here we are, not only me, but a lot of people were going to get payments this week.”“I’ve spoken to a few people who have planned stuff, organised stuff, taking out loans, everything to, to coincide with these payments coming through and now they’re not coming.” A separate ex-employee Ryan, who asked that his last name be withheld, has made a complaint to the Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner about Maurice Blackburn’s handling of the compensation.“While Maurice Blackburn claim that this process is being completed with attention to detail in order to ensure each individual is compensated fairly since everyone’s situation is different, the fact of the matter is that the catalyst which put each individual in their varied positions is identical for everyone.”“Therefore compensation should have been divided equally between all those involved without the need for this drawn out and stressful process.”He accused Maurice Blackburn of dragging out the process and showing “zero empathy or care for those directly affected”.It is common practice in class actions for successful claimants to receive different amounts based on their circumstances.The date change Maurice Blackburn is seeking relates to the payment of the $90 million penalty, which is not being administered by Maurice Blackburn but by the court. A Maurice Blackburn spokesperson said the court had ordered the firm to provide a list of payments made to workers to calculate how much each should receive from the penalty fund.“We have advised the court that the scheme is ongoing and unfortunately we cannot provide that schedule by 31 July,” the spokesperson said. “This is due to the ongoing complexity of the scheme and the time it is taking to assess everyone fairly and reasonably.”That has involved approximately 40 people to date, including its own employees and external experts. Maurice Blackburn has provided individualised support to around 1000 claimants to locate and produce the relevant documents, it said.Transport Workers Union national secretary Michael Kaine said: “The TWU wants to see payments expedited to the greatest extent possible without compromising the integrity of the process.”The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. 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