Positive profit and industrial relations news for Qantas

Updated August 21, 2008 14:53:40

Qantas posts profit and ends months of industrial action with engineers. [ABCTV]

As Qantas announces a huge profit jump in its full-year results, the airline's engineers have accepted a new enterprise bargaining agreement offered to them, bringing months of industrial action to an end.

The federal secretary of the Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association, Steve Purvinas, says 94 per cent of the union's members were happy with the deal.

"We've been in dispute with the airline over the difference between three per cent per annum and five per cent per annum," he said.

"What we've done is come to an outcome where the airline has kept intact the headline three per cent wage rise, but there's been some changes to our wage classifications structure that sees all of our members get a minimum of four per cent increase in remuneration per annum, up to 5.8 per cent per annum."

The agreement comes as Qantas defends its safety record after posting a $US845 million full-year after-tax profit, a 35 per cent increase on last year's result.

Its before-tax profit was a record $1.23 billion.

That is despite high oil prices.

Qantas chief Geoff Dixon says the airline has not taken its eye off the ball and continues to be "second to none".

But the airline chief says the lengthy industrial dispute with its engineers has cost Qantas.