Two baggage handlers are fired after viral footage showed them hurling Qantas passengers’ luggage onto a conveyor belt
- Two Swissport baggage handlers hired for Qantas have been fired
- They were shot throwing passengers’ luggage and slamming suitcases shut
- Both Swissport and Qantas condemned the behavior of the employees
Two baggage handlers who were filmed carelessly tossing passengers’ luggage onto a conveyor belt have been fired.
Footage taken at Melbourne Airport shows workers from Swissport Australia, who had been contracted by Qantas, laughing as they slammed suitcases onto the ground and tossed them lazily.
Swissport has since confirmed that the two employees have been fired.
“An urgent investigation has been conducted into the recent behavior of two team members at Melbourne Airport who handled customer luggage in an unacceptable manner,” a spokesman said in a statement to Chron Australia.
‘As a result of this investigation, these individuals are no longer employed by Swissport.’
Two baggage handlers who were filmed carelessly tossing passengers’ luggage onto a conveyor belt have been fired
The trio were released as Qantas and groundhandling service Swissport Australia launched an investigation into their behavior when arrested at Melbourne Airport
Qantas had previously said the behavior was “unacceptable” as a third worker was also fired after the footage surfaced. What happened to the employee is unclear.
In the footage, a handler can be seen lifting a bag high over his head before slamming it onto the ground so hard it bounces – much to his colleague’s amusement.
The same handler then tosses a small suitcase several feet in the air and onto the tape as if shooting a basketball.
At least two sacks were thrown off the conveyor belt and disappeared from view without a worker appearing to pay attention.
Footage was uploaded to TikTok on Friday, and many were appalled at the lack of care for travelers’ luggage.
One TikTokker asked, “Is this like a competition to destroy luggage the fastest?”, while another declared the workers “should be fired on the spot.”
One TikTokker asked, “Is this like a competition to destroy luggage the fastest?”, while another declared the workers “should be fired on the spot.”
‘You must be kidding me! I bet they would stink if someone treated their stuff like that,” said another.
“It would actually take more strength to lift it and force it to throw than to just put it on the conveyor belt. If you don’t like it, find another job,” one wrote.
“When will you be fired?” commented another.
“So wrong on so many levels, these men need to be held accountable.”
Another said cameras should be permanently installed to film the actions of the baggage handlers.
Swissport says its team members on its website “work together to ensure our customers’ expectations are met or exceeded” (stock image)
Swissport employs more than 68,000 people at 315 airports in 50 countries.
An internal Swissport memo was also provided to Chron Australia, in which the company’s CEO, Brad Moore, said: “The behavior in the video is letting us all down”.
“Disrespectful behavior towards our customers’ luggage and personal belongings will not be tolerated and will result in serious disciplinary action.”
He added that the behavior depicted in the video was limited to “a small group of individuals.”
“The unacceptable behavior of a few individuals will not go unchecked and must not affect the quality work of our entire team,” he said.