Up to 21,000 Qantas pilots, cabin crew, engineers and head office staff will receive about $219 million in appreciation bonuses from their employers.
The Australian airline, which also owns Jetstar, yesterday announced its first annual profit since 2019 after struggling to stay afloat during the pandemic.
The company posted a record pre-tax profit of $1.59 billion, an impressive turnaround from last year’s $1.19 billion loss
As a result, employees can finally cash in the shares set aside for “incentive turnarounds” in September 2021, worth about $3,850 per share. On top of that, they will also receive cash payments worth about $3,200 as the enterprise agreement is finalized, and employee travel credits worth about $320, for a total of nearly $7,400 each.
“Our people have done an incredible job in very difficult circumstances,” outgoing Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said in a statement. statement. “These results demonstrate a substantial turnaround in both our finances and services over the past year.”
The company benefited from lower fuel costs, fewer supply chain constraints and a surge in travel demand as the country lifted all COVID-19 border restrictions last summer.
“Flight delays and cancellations have largely returned to pre-coronavirus levels, and we’ve moved from deep losses to strong profits and an investment pipeline worth billions of dollars,” Joyce said.
strong demand
In fact, the airline has had to adjust to meet the growing demand for flights, but that’s a good question.
“Demand for travel has been exceptionally strong and we have delivered more aircraft and opened new routes to meet demand,” he added. “Compared to the previous year, we safely flew nearly 70 billion seat kilometers and doubled the number of passengers carried to 46 million.”
Qantas isn’t the only airline celebrating its success with staff in the form of “thank you” bonuses. Earlier this year, Singapore Airlines paid out bonuses equivalent to about eight months’ wages to staff in recognition of their hard work during the pandemic after announcing its annual profit.
But Qantas goes a step further and also offers rewards to passengers.
Thanking customers for record profits
To celebrate its record-breaking profitable year and thank customers who have contributed to its success, Qantas has surprised its frequent flyers by rewarding them with loyalty points.
Passengers who have flown at least 1 Qantas flight in the past 12 months will receive an email with a gift – a choice of 1,000 Frequent Flyer points or 30 Status points. Meanwhile, travelers who fly 10 or more times will earn 5,000 Qantas points or 75 status points.
For reference, it typically takes six one-way economy class flights between Sydney and Melbourne to earn 5,000 Qantas Points.
What’s more, it’s not just Qantas’ existing customers who stand to profit from the airline’s generosity, with the airline also announcing a huge sale on more than 1 million seats across its network, flying to more than 90 destinations.
Passengers can save up to 40 per cent on Qantas domestic, Qantas international and QantasLink regional flights, while Jetstar also enjoys 50% off fares.
“Our customers have shown a lot of patience and understanding as the industry recovers,” Joyce said. “We announced a gift of points or status points today, but we know the best way to thank them is to consistently deliver the standard they rightly expect and reinvest our profits to continually improve their experience.”
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