SYDNEY, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Australian airline group Qantas said on Tuesday that around 850 corporate jobs are expected to be affected under a new outsourcing deal with consulting firm Accenture, with much of the work to be moved to India.
The Qantas Group said in a statement that the multi-year strategic partnership would modernize its back-end systems, processes and data as the group steps up investment in technology and artificial intelligence (AI).
Under the partnership, some corporate services will move to Accenture, with most of the work delivered by its teams in India and some in Australia. The services will be further transformed through automation and AI over time, it said.
The affected roles account for about three percent of the group's 28,000-strong Australian workforce.
Qantas said it would consult affected employees and their unions before determining individual outcomes, with the first wave of changes expected to be in place by mid-2027.
Qantas Group CEO Vanessa Hudson said that standing still was "not an option" as organizations around the world increasingly use technology and AI to transform their operations.
She acknowledged the impact on affected employees and said the group would seek to redeploy them to other roles where possible, alongside providing reskilling, retraining and other support.
The announcement came after the group, which also includes budget carrier Jetstar, said on Friday that it would continue adjusting airfares and flight capacity in response to higher fuel costs.
In August, the Qantas Group reported a statutory profit after tax of 1.29 billion Australian dollars (892.4 million U.S. dollars) for the 2025-26 financial year, down 19.7 percent year-on-year. ■
