Qantas to cut about 850 jobs as some work moves to AI and Accenture teams in India

Qantas Airways, Australia's largest airline, has decided to lay off about 850 employees. The company will now use AI and new technology to carry out many of its tasks. Some of its work will also be sent to India, where teams of the consulting firm Accenture will handle it.

The layoffs will be completed over the coming period, and the first phase is expected to be implemented by 2027. The decision has raised afresh the question of how many more jobs could be lost as the use of AI grows.

The layoffs will affect Qantas's back-office and corporate departments. Jobs in the finance, procurement, human resources and marketing departments will be hit first. The company has made clear that some work will be handed to Accenture, and this will be handled mainly by Accenture's teams in India. This means that some work now done by company employees in Australia will be done from India.

On the reason for the layoffs, Qantas says technology and AI are rapidly changing the aviation industry. The company has partnered with Accenture for this purpose. It has more than 1,000 legacy software applications and systems, and now plans to step up modernisation, automation and the use of AI.

The question also arises whether this will create more jobs in India. Qantas is moving some of its back-office work to India, to be handled by Accenture's teams, so some of the company's work will be done in India instead of Australia. However, the company has not made clear how many employees in India will be responsible for this work. There is therefore no guarantee that employment in India will rise.