One day’s notice: Qantas boss Joyce to walk away tomorrow as airline moves to quell public outrage
Alan Joyce has bowed to the public outrage and told the board of Qantas that he would bring forward his retirement as chief executive and will hand over control of the company tomorrow.
Alan Joyce says Qantas will support the referendum 'yes' case. (Photo: AAP: Joel Carrett)
The decision follows months of bad publicity for the airline relating to everything from Jobkeeper subsidies to late flights and lost baggage and Joyce’s bonuses.
The bad publicity surrounding Joyce had been a drag on the company’s share price, which was hit particularly hard after the competition regulator, the ACCC, launched Federal Court action against the company over taking bookings for flights that had already been cancelled.
The ACCC said it was looking for a record fine if Qantas was found guilty.
Vanessa Hudson, who was announced as Joyce’s successor in May, would assume the role of managing director and group chief executive from September 6.
“In the last few weeks, the focus on Qantas and events of the past make it clear to me that the company needs to move ahead with its renewal as a priority,” Joyce said.
“The best thing I can do under these circumstances is to bring forward my retirement and hard over to Vanessa and the new management team now, knowing they will do an excellent job.
“There is a lot I am proud of over my 22 years with Qantas, including the past 15 years as CEO.
“There have been many ups and downs and there is clearly much work still to be done, especially to make sure we always deliver for our customers.
“But I leave knowing the company is fundamentally strong and has a bright future.”
Qantas chair Richard Goyder said Joyce had always had the best interests of the airline front and centre and the transition to new management came at a challenging time for the airline.
“We have an important job to do in restoring the public’s confidence in the kind of company we are and that is what the board is focused on and what management under Vanessa will do,” Goyder said.
Shareholders still have to approve Hudson’s appointment with a vote to be taken at the company’s AGM in November.
Qantas said the succession would mean that Rob Marcolina would take on Hudson’s former role as chief financial officer.
Joyce still holds 229,000 Qantas shares valued at $1.3 million based on today’s opening price.
Qantas shares jumped by more than 1 per cent when the market opened this morning.
