TY - JOUR
T1 - A comparative analysis of restructuring employment relationships in qantas and aer lingus
T2 - Different routes, similar destinations
AU - Oxenbridge, Sarah
AU - Wallace, Joseph
AU - White, Lorraine
AU - Tiernan, Siobhan
AU - Lansbury, Russell
PY - 2010/2
Y1 - 2010/2
N2 - This paper examines the experiences of Qantas and Aer Lingus. The two companies have a shared history as national, 'legacy' (full-service) carriers and strategically important, 'benevolent' employers. More recently, both airlines have been forced to change in the face of competition from low cost carriers (LCCs) and external threats to their existence. In this paper, we examine how the two airlines have reacted to these pressures. We look at the role played by institutional frameworks and competitive circumstances in determining industrial relations strategies. The entry of LCCs and changes (or potential changes) to ownership structures through privatization and takeover bids have led to downward pressure on pay and conditions at both airlines. Accordingly, a key issue considered is whether a collectivist model of employment relations can survive in the face of low cost competition.
AB - This paper examines the experiences of Qantas and Aer Lingus. The two companies have a shared history as national, 'legacy' (full-service) carriers and strategically important, 'benevolent' employers. More recently, both airlines have been forced to change in the face of competition from low cost carriers (LCCs) and external threats to their existence. In this paper, we examine how the two airlines have reacted to these pressures. We look at the role played by institutional frameworks and competitive circumstances in determining industrial relations strategies. The entry of LCCs and changes (or potential changes) to ownership structures through privatization and takeover bids have led to downward pressure on pay and conditions at both airlines. Accordingly, a key issue considered is whether a collectivist model of employment relations can survive in the face of low cost competition.
KW - Airline industry
KW - Industrial relations
KW - Low cost carriers
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=76449116890&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/09585190903509472
DO - 10.1080/09585190903509472
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:76449116890
SN - 0958-5192
VL - 21
SP - 180
EP - 196
JO - International Journal of Human Resource Management
JF - International Journal of Human Resource Management
IS - 2
ER -