Almost 650 workers in Melbourne and Sydney voted overwhelmingly in a secret ballot in favour of a new 4-year enterprise bargaining agreement to safeguard as many as 1400 engineering jobs and secure substantial pay increases.
The Australian Workers' Union (AWU) said negotiations with Qantas management and other unions had succeeded without the need for any industrial action, adding the result highlighted the role of unions.
"As part of our negotiations for a new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement, members wanted our union to press the job security issue,'' AWU national secretary Paul Howes said.
"Qantas has now agreed to a more open process to discussing how we can keep jobs from going offshore. Together we will look for alternatives to outsourcing work and off-shoring Qantas aircraft.
As part of the new deal, most engineers will receive pay rises of between 4.53 per cent and 5 per cent a year, with some earning increases of up to 6.5 per cent a year over 4 years.
Apprentice wages will rise between 10 and 13 per cent.
"The main objective was to keep Australian jobs in Australia,'' AWU spokesman Andrew Casey told AAP.
"The other main objective was to secure pay rises for our members and workers, and these are quite significant pay increases.''
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