Irate Australia turns barrage against Air NZ

By GREG ANSLEY

CANBERRA - The wave of anger against New Zealanders that trapped Prime Minister Helen Clark in Melbourne last week is now zeroing in on Air New Zealand, with renewed threats to force Ansett's former owner out of Australian skies.

Even the Australian Workers' Union, which a decade ago fought against Kiwi shearers and demanded transtasman work visas, has backed away from retaliation against New Zealanders and their products.

Prime Minister John Howard rejected punitive measures against "our closest friend" and Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson said anger should target Air NZ.

Suggestions from Wellington that the Government-backed rescue package included money for Ansett employees further thawed relations, although Air NZ's refusal to pay them remained unflinching in the Industrial Relations Commission yesterday.

But it is clear that if Air NZ does not agree to meet the entitlements - claimed by unions to run to $A400 million ($490 million) - the airline will face widespread industrial action aimed at blocking it from a market crucial for its survival.

As thousands of Ansett workers and supporters rallied again yesterday outside the airline's terminals in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, Australian Council of Trade Unions president Sharan Burrow said unions would force the airline to pay the entitlements.

Workers' union national secretary Bill Shorten said Air NZ had until the end of the week to agree to pay the entitlements or face coordinated union action.

Queensland's Labor Premier, Peter Beattie, called for a consumer boycott of the airline.

Though Air NZ is the big target, some broad anger has been directed at New Zealand. Last week, diplomatic posts fielded angry calls and there was a bout of Kiwi-bashing on talkback radio.

But yesterday, Mr Anderson cautioned against bitterness: "We have no war, no gripe, no disagreements with our close friends, the New Zealanders themselves."

Mr Shorten said Australian aviation unions were not anti-New Zealand, "but Air NZ has a moral obligation and we think an even greater commercial obligation to honour the entitlements to Ansett workers".

Yesterday, about 3500 of Ansett's 16,000 employees were called back to work in the hope of generating cashflow through the defunct airline's air freight, travel and engineering subsidiaries.

Some of its aircraft may also be flying again this week under leasing deals being negotiated with Qantas and Virgin Blue, and other groups have expressed interest in resurrecting parts of Ansett's business.

And Qantas last night began employing Ansett temporarily. Four-hundred Ansett customer service staff are being taken on initially and others will be offered jobs during the next five weeks.

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