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25 Sep, 2015

Virgin Australia rewards flight attendants with big pay increases

Virgin Australia’s short-haul cabin crew will receive generous annual pay rises ranging from 4 per cent to nearly 10 per cent over a four-year period, after voting in favour of an enterprise bargaining agreement the Transport Workers’ Union says will make the airline better and more sustainable.

The airline, which reported a $49 million pre-tax underlying loss in the last financial year and has plans to cut $1.2 billion of cumulative costs by 2017, is bucking broader trends in the industry and the Australian economy.

Overall, 90 per cent of Virgin staff voted for the deal, having rejected two earlier proposals. The agreement covers more than 2100 short-haul cabin crew, or about  one-fifth of its total workforce, excluding low-cost arm Tigerair Australia. Virgin is expected to return to profitability in the current financial year.

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