Qantas announced on Tuesday that it will lay off 850 employees from mid‑2027 and will outsource parts of those roles—largely to Indian firms and to a lesser extent to Australian companies. At the same time, the airline said it will expand the use of artificial intelligence (AI) across several functions.
Which functions are affected
The airline said it will first reorganize and outsource roles in finance, procurement, human resources and marketing. The company indicated the outsourcing will mainly go to Indian providers; it has not disclosed how many positions will be affected specifically by the Accenture‑related IT work or the broader offshoring.
Accenture agreement and automation
Qantas has signed an agreement with Accenture to redesign certain IT systems. Vanessa Hudson, Qantas Chief Executive Officer, wrote in an internal email to staff: “We know this will be bad news for some of our people, but the decision is not a reflection on their work or commitment.”
According to the company, the Accenture partnership will ‘‘redesign and simplify parts of corporate operations and remove duplication’’. Tasks handed to Accenture will be progressively developed, with automation and AI playing an increasingly central role over time.
Context: costs, capacity and fleet renewal
The announcement came days after Qantas warned in a market outlook that higher fuel costs could force fare increases and reduced frequencies. The airline also said it is about to begin its largest fleet renewal program in history: after acquiring 17 new aircraft in the previous financial year, it may add a further 31 aircraft next year.
Scale and implications
Qantas reported about 32,000 employees worldwide in its most recent annual report. While the 850 job reductions represent a fraction of the total workforce, the combined outsourcing and AI strategy could have wider implications for staffing across multiple corporate functions.
Qantas said it is consulting with unions and affected employees about the plans and the timetable for implementation.
