The Wire

The Greens say Qantas workers have lost their bargaining rights after Fair Work Australia ordered an end to all industrial action by the airline and unions early this morning. The workplace umpire made the call to stop further damage to the tourism industry caused by Qantas’ decision to ground its entire fleet on Saturday –leaving 70,000 people stranded.

Under the ruling, employees can’t hold strikes and the airline has to resume flights. FWA has given all parties 21 days to resolve the dispute. The Greens say the government waited too long to intervene, and that Qantas now has the upper hand as it seeks to move jobs offshore.