Amazing turnaround – Air NZ recruits laid-off staff
Reports from New Zealand this morning say that Air New Zealand is trying to re-employ more than 80 engineering staff, just 10 months after they laid off 300 to save the large-aircraft maintenance business.
In February more than 2000 engineering staff, who were facing the closure of the Auckland heavy maintenance base, with the loss of 617 jobs, agreed to sweeping labour reforms to save $48 million over five years.
The new need for engineering staff comes after the airline won two big contracts to install in-flight entertainment systems for Virgin Blue and British charter carrier Thomsonfly, with Air New Zealand would also conducting heavy maintenance checks on Thomsonfly’s nine Boeing 767-300s.
Technical operations General Manager Chris Nassenstein said 37 staff were needed at the Auckland wide-body and Christchurch narrow-body maintenance bases and another 46 temporary staff were needed in Christchurch for the 10-month Virgin Blue contract.
Aviation and Marine Engineers’ Association secretary George Ryde said the airline was struggling to attract enough workers and it was surprising additional staff were required so soon after the redundancies, adding, “The ink is hardly dry on that agreement.”
He added that the union had asked many of the redundant engineers to come back, but there had been few takers, with potential candidates scared off by the bitter fight over the engineering business as well as the continuing instability of the global aviation industry. In addition, young people were also not applying for engineering apprenticeships with Air New Zealand or the Christchurch Engine Centre joint venture with United States engine maker Pratt and Whitney.
Mr Ryde said, “That is partly to do with the fact that people don’t feel it is such a secure industry to spend a lot of time and money training up, without any real guarantees about what is at the end of the training”.
Air New Zealand CEO Rob Fyfe said other engineering contracts were in the pipeline from northern hemisphere airlines and engineering capacity was more than 90% filled for the financial year – as full as was reasonably achievable.
He said that the Virgin Blue and Thomsonfly work were the result of the new employment contract, struck with unions, which made the business internationally competitive.
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
In Italy, the Meloni government congratulates itself for its tourism achievements
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive