If unions have enough push and they push too hard, the company...

If unions have enough push and they push too hard, the company falls over. If it can't stand up, everyone gets to go home on no pay forever, regardless of what rights people might think they have.

Although unions can accomplish a lot for their members, they can also do a lot of long term harm to their members if they jeapordise a good situation. We've all heard stories of unions being ridiculous, aggressive, militant, lazy, and greedy. I've recently experienced this first hand and it's a shameful situation.

I wonder how unionised Qantas employees feel about their union right now. I assume that like the rest of us, they were pretty happy to get the job that supports them and their families, and unless that job has changed dramatically since they were employed, they're going to be pretty unhappy about the prospect of the dole queue.

And union leaders who are senior members of the Labor Party - I wouldn't be holding my breath for a fair mediation on this one.

Finally, QAN shareholders, all you can do is buy as much lube as possible before the price goes up when the carbon tax comes in. I bet there'll be be very few QAN shareholders voting for Labor next time around.