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This website provides information about the Qantas Airways Limited (Qantas) Settlement Distribution Scheme. Maurice Blackburn is the Administrator of this Scheme.
Background
In December 2020, the Transport Workers’ Union of Australia (TWU) commenced proceedings against Qantas Airways Limited and Qantas Ground Services (Qantas) in the Federal Court of Australia in relation to the decision by Qantas to outsource some 1,820 ground handling employees.
Outcome
The TWU were successful. The Federal Court found that Qantas contravened the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).
Qantas appealed the Federal Court’s decision to the High Court. The High Court unanimously dismissed Qantas’ appeal.
The TWU and Qantas have now reached agreement for Qantas to compensate affected employees for the loss they have suffered loss as a result of the contravention.
Maurice Blackburn is the administrator of that settlement fund.
Update
On 28 April 2025, the Court made orders enabling the Settlement Distribution Scheme to commence.
We understand affected employees are keen to receive their initial payment.
We are progressively making initial payments to participating affected employees as quickly as possible. The timing of payments will depend upon when you registered for the scheme and if the Administrator requires any further information from you to confirm your identity or bank details. Due to the volume of registrations, we are unable to provide individual updates as to when you will receive your payment.
At this stage, our priority is to process the initial payments. We will contact all eligible affected workers to obtain further details about their economic loss and non-economic loss in the coming months.
There is nothing you need to do until we contact you.
We encourage you to regularly check this website for updates.
If you have queries, you can call or email our team on:
- Phone: 1800 716 855
- Email: qantascase@mauriceblackburn.com.au
We are experiencing a very high volume of enquiries, and we may not be able to get back to you straight away.
Important updates will be published on this website and communicated to those affected by this settlement.
Frequently asked questions
The TWU and Qantas have reached an agreement on the establishment of a $120 million fund to compensate the 1,820 ground handling employees whose jobs were unlawfully outsourced back in 2020.
All participating affected employees will receive an initial base payment for non-economic loss (hurt, humiliation and distress) through the Settlement Fund.
You may be entitled to more than the initial payment based on your individual circumstances and you will be asked for more information as part of the process to assist in determining your entitlements.
Everyone’s payment will be different and will be assessed based on their own circumstances.
At this stage, it is not possible to tell you how much total compensation you will be eligible to receive from the settlement. This will depend upon an assessment of your individual circumstances by the Administrator.
In order to assess your eligibility for additional compensation above the initial payment, you will need to provide information regarding your economic loss and the impact of the outsourcing decision on you.
We are progressively making initial payments to participating affected employees. The timing of payments will depend upon when you registered for the scheme and if the Administrator requires any further information from you to confirm your identity or bank details
At this stage, our priority is to process the initial payments.
We will contact all eligible affected employees to obtain further details about their economic loss and non-economic loss in the coming months.
In the coming months, we will be asking participating affected employees for more information as part of the process to assist in determining any additional compensation. This will include information about your employment since your termination by Qantas and information about the impact of the outsourcing decision on you. We will give you time to gather the information you need.
Participating affected employees do not need to do anything further at this stage.
We will tell you when it is time for you to send us information about your loss, including information about the impact of the outsourcing decision on you.
If you have not received an email inviting you to register for the settlement scheme and you believe you are eligible for the scheme, please get in contact with our team on:
- Phone: 1800 716 855
- Email: qantascase@mauriceblackburn.com.au
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