Air Navigation and Civil Aviation Amendment (Aircraft Crew) Bill 2011; Qantas Sale Amendment (Still Call Australia Home) Bill 2011

RURAL AFFAIRS AND TRANSPORT INQUIRY - AIR NAVIGATION AND CIVIL AVIATION AMENDMENT (AIRCRAFT CREW) BILL 2011; QANTAS SALE AMENDMENT (STILL CALL AUSTRALIA HOME) BILL 2011

On 18 August 2011 the Senate referred the Air Navigation and Civil Aviation Amendment (Aircraft Crew) Bill 2011 for inquiry and report. On 14 September 2011, the Senate referred the Qantas Sale Amendment (Still Call Australia Home) Bill 2011 for inquiry and report. The Committee will inquire into the bills concurrently.

The Air Navigation and Civil Aviation Amendment (Aircraft Crew) Bill 2011 will require that Australian airlines and their subsidiaries provide pay and conditions for overseas-based flight and cabin crew operating on their flights that are no less favourable than if they were directly employed by the Australian airline.

Schedule 1 of the bill amends the Air Navigation Act 1920 to place a new condition on the international aviation licences held by Australian airlines or the subsidiaries or associated entities of Australian airlines. Schedule 2 of the bill amends the Civil Aviation Act 1988 to place a new condition on all new and existing Air Operator’s Certificates (AOCs).

With respect to this bill the inquiry will consider issues of safety (including fatigue), pay and working conditions and the effect on Australian jobs due to the use of overseas-based crew by Australian airlines and their subsidiaries.

The Qantas Sale Amendment (Still Call Australia Home) Bill 2011 seeks to amend the Qantas Sale Act 1992. The bill inserts a definition for "associated entity" into the Act, in line with section 50AAA of the Corporations Act 2001. The bill requires that:
• Qantas ensure that, of its facilities broadly, its principal operational centre is located in Australia;
• Qantas, as a parent company, ensure that its subsidiaries and associated entities – such as Jetstar – have its principal operational centre located in Australia;
• the majority of heavy maintenance of aircraft and the majority of flight operations and training conducted by Qantas or by its subsidiaries and any associated entities is conducted in Australia; and
• at least one of the Directors of Qantas has a minimum of 5 years' professional flight operations experience and that at least one of the Directors has a minimum of 5 years' aircraft engineering experience.

Currently the Qantas Sale Act only allows an application to the Court for injunctions by the Minister. The bill extends this to allow for applications to the Court by 100 shareholder members or shareholder members who hold at least 5 percent of the shares in Qantas.

The report was released on the 22nd of March 2012: http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate_Committees?url=rrat_ctte/aircraft_crew_2011/report/index.htm