Now, here’s a way for Jetstar to keep costs down.
They announce a job fare – I mean, fare… Sorry, jobs fair.
You get sucked into applying for a glamorous position with the airline.
All is good. You have the credentials. You have the background.
You get told you must undertake a medical. No problem.
You’re not told you have to pass the medical and under cross examine with one of the representatives, you question them if you must pass. The response: “it’s just routine, you’ll be fine”.
You get reassured it’s not a requirement to pass – THEN You are then told, you must pay out of your own pocket.
We’re talking nearly $300 in an initial payment. This is through a recommended outsource called “Bodycare” for a physical.
WHAT?
– Now, let’s go back a bit.
If you don’t have a job – how are you expected to pay for a job?
That’s right – you must pay your own way to get a job at Jetstar.
To keep the timeline in perspective, my application with Jetstar pre-dates my time with Capital Radio Network. It was February 2022.
HISTORY and EXPERIENCE:
I used to work for Delta Airlines – I have commercial airline experience.
You would think, airlines, such as the Qantas Jetstar group that’s crying out for thousands of staff, would want someone with experience.
But imagine being told in follow up from Bodycare:- “if you want this job, you also need a few referrals from doctors”
Another $280 later, you are told you have completed everything that was asked of you.
It comes as Qantas approves a security clearance, that I received in the mail.
Oh dear – weeks later you receive an email:- “You have 21 days to return your airport I.D. as you are no longer an employee”.
That’s strange – I’ve not received any information about an issue.
It took two months for Jetstar to finally acknowledge an issue from Bodycare, eventhough its third party physical trainer alleged that I had completed the tasks.
I was told I completed the step test. He told me to stop and acknowledged I had completed it.
It turns out, he lied.
I was advised over the phone, I only completed 2mins 45secs when he stopped me. I needed to complete 3mins.
Not knowing that the physical was incomplete, and being told that I had completed all tasks, I was allowed to leave
Amazing that months later, it was the email from Qantas demanding the return of my security pass, that sparked a concern.
Many would be concerned of a security breach, but Jetstar was not concerned. I was just a number, obviously.
But the airline left me hanging. The airline allowed things to continue for another two months before finally seeking a request from “Qantas Medical”.
The Jetstar recruiter told me, I would be allowed to start the process all over again. (How nice of them!)
BUT – It also seems, my physical was “ugly” in the eyes of the bodycare representative –
I admit, I’m not an athlete, but there’s not much description in what was deemed “Ugly”.
Current costs added up to approximately $550 for the initial round, as part of the original application.
To fix the “Ugly” physical and make a secondary application, the Jetstar recruiter told me that Qantas Medical wants me to fix up a few athletic abilities.
This would require additional costs, not to mention the re-application fees.
We are now looking at an estimated $1,200 just to get a job with Jetstar.
Remember, I would be expected to foot this bill. Jetstar doesn’t pay a thing which normal employers would atleast pay half way.
I’ve attempted to reach out to the Jetstar Manager involved in the process – (David Jones from the Gold Coast), but my attempts have been met with staff tlaking about his “unavailability”.
He is welcomed to comment further, should he wish to respond. Especially since he was so happy to talk up Jetstar and how easy it is at at the airline. Obviously when questions are raised, during the hiring process, he’s become “protected species”.
My question to him is the wording about a physical. There’s a big difference in the expectation of passing to get the job and “don’t worry about it” as was told me at the jobs fair in 2022.
Eventhough the Qantas Group has announced plans for thousands more staff, keep in mind that the costs associated with working the alleged “glamorous” job will cost you “Out of pocket”. $1,200 is not a reasonable amount.
Many other businesses will absorb this cost – but not Jetstar that obviously needs to keep its costs down, so they force that cost on you – and get away with it.
By the way: As a former airline employee, I ask the question – Why do you need to run stairs for three minutes, when the customer service job dictates you are checking in passengers?
The post Jetstar Job-if you pay for it yourself appeared first on 2CC Talking Canberra.
