Qantas Airways plans to move about 850 corporate jobs to consulting firm Accenture as it works to overhaul more than 1,000 aging computer systems. Most of the roles will shift to India, with some staying in Australia.
The Australian airline announced the plan in an internal email to staff on Tuesday. Chief executive Vanessa Hudson said the news would be hard for some workers.
“This is hard news for some and I’m sorry for the uncertainty it brings,” Hudson wrote.
Legacy Systems at the Center of the Deal
Hudson said the multi-year agreement with Accenture is about modernising the airline’s IT systems. She said the goal is for Qantas to become more efficient.
Accenture is a global consulting and technology services company. Qantas did not say how much the contract is worth.
The airline spends more than AU$1 billion (about US$691 million) a year on technology. Hudson said its back-end systems need an upgrade.
“Like every airline, we run on technology built up over decades for a different era, including more than 1,000 legacy applications that were never designed to work together,” she said.
Under the deal, Qantas said it will redesign and simplify parts of how its corporate teams work. It also plans to cut duplication across those functions.
Hudson said this would let staff “spend more time on work that creates value for our customers and the business.” The company added that the work Accenture takes over will be “transformed further with automation and AI” in time.
Which Jobs Are Affected
The job changes will begin in mid-2027, according to Hudson. The first roles to move will be in finance, procurement, people and marketing.
These roles will shift “mostly” to teams in India, with “some in Australia,” the email said. Qantas said it is in talks with unions and staff about the plans.
Workers affected by the cuts will be redeployed where possible, the airline said. This includes new roles in Australia.
Hudson pointed to the pace of technology change as a driver of the decision. She said the “scale and speed of change in technology and AI is something none of us has seen in our lifetime.”
Qantas employs about 28,000 people in Australia and another 4,000 around the world. The 850 roles make up less than 3% of the airline’s total workforce.
The company said thousands of its workers already use AI in their daily jobs. It did not say how many staff currently work in the four affected areas.
The announcement follows a market update from the airline just days earlier. In that update, Qantas flagged fare increases and flight cuts as fuel costs climbed.
The Australian Services Union has been asked for comment on the plan.
