“Jetconnect pilots live in New Zealand and have their headquarters, and their jobs are subject to New Zealand labour legislation. The question is also whether Jetconnect is within the meaning of the DUE Act… as an Australian employer,” found Fair Work Australia. “This is a registered new Zealand company with headquarters and management based in Auckland. While there has been much evidence and arguments in favour of the relationship between Qantas and its subsidiary in this proceeding, we believe that this is not enough… definition of “Australian employer” in … commerce Law is relevant in Australia. “The whole Jetconnect operation was nothing short of a deception. When passengers purchase a Qantas ticket and then board a plane with a roo flying in the back, they can expect their pilots and crew members to be full Qantas employees. “There is always a fear that one thing will lead to another – that more New Zealand pilots are operating planes in Australia, which means that pilots who live in Australia and are trained in Australia are at risk of missing jobs,” said Tonkin, a former Qantas pilot.

Pilots say Jetconnect is indeed an operational division of Qantas – New Zealand pilots wear Qantas uniforms, have Qantas employees and fly Qantas aircraft that travel the distances defined by Qantas. Management availability during the holiday season prevented personal meetings to discuss pilots` concerns about the information presented around The Jetconnect and Network proposals, but work continued in the background. Australian pilots are now suing Qantas and claim the airline created Jetconnect in New Zealand to bypass Australia`s utility obligations and cut wages. Fair Work Australia has rejected a request by the Australian and International Airline Pilots` Association (AIPA) to bring pilots employed by Qantas` Qantas subsidiary in New Zealand under Australian law and industrial agreements. Keith Tonkin, general manager of the aviation industry Projects, said Qantas pilots feared the airline`s action would open the door to greater use of offshore labour in the future. Qantas saves twice with Jetconnect: fewer drivers` pay and reduced hours that pilots must have under the Qantas agreement. The herald understands that if the pilots` action before the full Fair Work Australia bank is unsuccessful, the association could consider industrial action. Jetconnect employs 100 New Zealand pilots operating Qantas` Trans Tasman 737 operations, most of which, according to Qantas, are covered by a three-year collective agreement negotiated with the New Zealand Airline Pilots Association. The Australian and International Pilots Association claims that Qantas` subsidiary, Jetconnect, is a “fictitious company” created by Qantas to circumvent its obligations arising from the distinction and employment contract it entered into with Qantas pilots. In 2009, the union lured the airline to the Fair Work Commission to argue that Qantas was using “fictitious contracts” by employing pilots on Jetconnect and paying them about 30 per cent less than Qantas pilots.

Qantas spokesman Andrew McGinnes said Jetconnect pilots would only fly the same routes as they do today and would not fly on the Tasman nationally or on other international routes.