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The airline is moving forward with AI-led automation and will move part of the work to India. Qantas job cuts will cut 850 Australian jobs. The plan, announced on 10 November 2026, is based on a multi-year deal with Accenture to modernise back-end systems, processes and data. The news raises an uncomfortable question for employees: if finance and HR teams at a household name airline are not safe, what corporate roles are? This follows a wave of workforce disruption sweeping across Australia, The Guardian reported.
Quick Facts
- Jobs affected: 850 Australian jobs
- Partner: Accenture, whose team based in India will take over some services
- First teams in line: finance, procurement, human resources and marketing
- Timeline: First changes expected in mid-2027
- Qantas workforce: about 32,000 employees
- Next step: consultation with affected staff and unions before final decisions
What’s Changing at Qantas Airlines
Qantas workforce restructuring targets back-office operations. The Accenture deal will see the airline invest more aggressively in technology and AI and move some services to Accenture’s large Indian workforce. “Change is coming at an unprecedented pace, and this decision is in no way a reflection on the contribution of those impacted,” said CEO Vanessa Hudson.
Roles That Are in Danger
The first cuts are in the corporate support roles: finance, procurement, HR and marketing. These are the types of administrative jobs that AI tools are increasingly able to perform, meaning that the replacement of office jobs in Australia by AI is now a current reality rather than a future concern. In the first round, frontline aviation staff are not named, but the direction of travel is clear.
Why Workers Are Fighting Back
The announcement has not gone down well with unions. The Australian Services Union says Qantas owes the public an explanation, noting the airline had previously claimed it had no plans to offshore jobs. Assistant national secretary Scott Cowen said those who kept the airline flying should not be made to pay the price for a change in technology.
History here too. Qantas has already lost a High Court case over the outsourcing of ground-handling work, so the outsourcing of Qantas jobs to India is likely to come under close scrutiny.
Part of a Bigger Pattern
It’s not just Qantas. NAB has flagged 2,500 roles in roughly the past month, Canva 1,200 and now Qantas 850, for a total of about 4,550 corporate jobs targeted for cuts, relocation or restructuring. The timing is bad: living costs are rising, unemployment is at its highest level in almost five years, and high oil prices linked to the Iran conflict are forcing companies to cut costs.
What Affected Workers Can Do
If you are in a back-office function, a few practical steps are in order now:
- Consultation: Ask for specifics in writing, including timelines, redundancy terms and redeployment options.
- Talk to your union early, particularly about whether consultation requirements are being met.
- Document any skills you have that go beyond just processing, like analysis, vendor management and stakeholder work, as these are the ones that are harder to automate.
- Look at adjacent roles in sectors still hiring, and build AI tool fluency rather than compete against it.
The Qantas job cuts will not be the last of their kind. Australian office workers are safest if they prepare early rather than waiting for the next announcement.
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