Australian flag carrier Qantas Airways plans to cut around 850 jobs in the country and outsource some corporate functions to Accenture, with much of the work expected to move to teams based in India as part of a technology and artificial intelligence (AI) overhaul.
Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson informed employees through an email that the restructuring would take place over several years, with the first changes expected by mid-2027. The affected functions include finance, procurement, human resources and marketing.
Qantas said its multi-year partnership with Accenture would help modernise its internal technology, data infrastructure and business processes.
Hudson said the airline needed access to specialised AI and data skills at a pace it could not achieve through internal hiring alone. She acknowledged the uncertainty for employees and said the company would consult affected workers and unions before finalising individual roles.
The proposed cuts represent around 3% of Qantas’ Australian workforce of approximately 28,000 employees. Its annual report lists a total workforce of around 32,000.
The Australian Services Union (ASU) criticised the decision, saying Qantas had earlier indicated that the Accenture partnership would not lead to jobs moving overseas.
ASU Assistant National Secretary Scott Cowen said the latest announcement contradicted those assurances and questioned why employees should bear the cost of the airline’s technology transition.
Qantas’ move follows similar outsourcing or offshoring initiatives by Woolworths, Officeworks, Telstra and National Australia Bank, highlighting how AI adoption and cost pressures are reshaping corporate workforces in Australia.
