COVID Latest: Qantas Slashes 6000 Jobs In Corona Recovery Plan
Thursday: dire global economic predictions; masks "the devil's laws"
Morning! It’s Thursday, June 25. Here is today’s ‘5+5: coronavirus edition’ — 5 things to know about COVID-19 today, + 5 non-corona things as well.
Latest AU stats: as of 9pm Wednesday, Australia has 7521 reported cases of COVID-19 (that’s +30 since the day before), with 6924 reported as ‘recovered’, and 103 deaths, according to the latest federal Department of Health stats. More stats below.
5 CORONAVIRUS THINGS
Qantas to slash 6000 jobs
As I write this, news is breaking that Qantas is to cut around 20 percent of its workforce due to an expected long-term downturn in international travel demand (link). CEO Alan Joyce said this morning that while domestic travel inside Australia will likely soon return to normal-ish, projections forecast it will take up to three years for international travel to return to its pre-COVID levels — meaning Qantas can’t keep on all the ground staff, cabin crews and other workers it needs for global travel. In addition to the job losses, some 15,000 employees will remain stood down, possibly to the end of the year. The news is unfolding as we speak so check back in later for more concrete details.
It comes as the International Monetary Fund, the global organisation responsible for fostering trade and economic growth, paints a dire picture for the world’s post-COVID recovery — calling it a "crisis like no other" and forecasting global GDP to dive by five percent this year, a $US12 trillion ($A17.5 trillion) dive over two years (link). That’s a deeper dip and a slower recovery than forecast in April.
However, the Australian government is putting on a braver face, pointing out IMF forecasts that our economy will contract by 4.5 percent this year but grow by 4 percent next year — an improvement on the last forecast. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said “the economic outlook for Australia is the second-best among all advanced economies, second only to (South) Korea”.
Arts JobMaker
The federal government has finally outlined a specific assistance package for the arts and entertainment sector, after months of delay and questioning — but it’s still not enough, industry experts say (link). With music venues, theatres and concert halls some of the first to be closed down under COVID lockdowns, and likely to be among the last to open back up again (maybe not for many more months still), there have been calls for ages for more specialised help in this area. Add to that, many workers are employed in a casual or freelance basis — such as lighting and sound staff, ticket sellers, bar staff etc — and therefore don’t qualify for JobKeeper, only the less lucrative JobSeeker, and that many staff here are young people or students.
The federal government will today specify a package under its JobMaker program, with some $250 million to help produce new shows or fund new ideas. But the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance has slammed the idea, critical that there’s no money specifically for workers, only companies and venues themselves, and called for JobKeeper to be extended to the industry. “The stark reality is that we are in danger of losing a generation of creative professionals in this country without an adequate income support scheme,” said MEAA chief executive Paul Murphy
Panic buying is back
Woolworths has re-introduced purchase limits on basic goods in some Victorian stores, as panic buying begins again in response to the uptick in cases in Melbourne (link). Limits of two items per purchase are back on toilet paper, hand sanitiser, paper towel, flour, sugar, pasta, mince, UHT milk, eggs and rice.
Masks “the devil’s laws”
If you want to see something to despair about, check out reactions from American citizens when a Florida council passed a regulation which made face masks mandatory. One woman called it “the devil’s laws” and called for doctors to be arrested. The regulation passed in Palm Beach, where Donald Trump has his Mar-a-Lago resort.
Today’s stats:
The latest stats from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering (as of 9.30am AEST Thursday) report 9,391,433 confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide. There have been 481,036 deaths.
The United States has 2,376,263 confirmed cases; Brazil is next on 1,188,631, then Russia (606,043). The U.S. has the most deaths (121,902), then Brazil (53,830) and the United Kingdom third on 43,165.
In Australia, the latest federal stats (as of 9pm Friday) show 7521 cases, 6924 people recovered, and 103 deaths.
The latest Australian graph:
5 NON-CORONAVIRUS THINGS
Some 250 jobs will be slashed from the ABC, due to budget cuts. Radio bulletins, websites and more are in the firing line (link).
Former Collingwood AFL star Heritier Lumumba has slammed the club for allegedly allowing racism among the playing group, and several of his former teammates have backed up his Lumumba’s claims that teammates referred to him as “chimp” (link). Current Carlton star Eddie Betts has also spoken up about racism in the league (link).
Three men have been indicted on murder charges by a U.S. grand jury over the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery, a black man killed while jogging in Georgia in February (link). The seemingly unprovoked actions of a father and son, who allegedly chased Arbery in their pickup truck before he was shot dead in a scuffle with the son, were caught on video but the incident did not receive widespread attention until May. Huge protests nationwide followed.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been accused of conspiring with Anonymous hacker group LulzSec in a new indictment from the U.S. Justice Department (link). The development does not mean new charges for Assange — who is currently in a British prison potentially facing extradition to America to face charges over hacking and sharing classified information — but it does “broaden the scope of the conspiracy surrounding alleged computer intrusions with which Assange was previously charged”.
And if you haven’t seen the latest incredibly botched painting restoration job which has gone viral, you need to check this out (link).
IMPORTANT EVERY DAY
Be hygienic; wash your hands properly, at least 30 seconds with soap and water, multiple times a day (here’s how you need to do it, plus a handy Dr Karl video tutorial); sneeze and cough into your elbows.
Listen to only official information from the World Health Organisation and legitimate health bodies — Don’t share dodgy stuff on Facebook. If it looks too good (or bad) to be true, it often is.
World Health Organisation latest statistics here; Australian government latest statistics here.
If you haven’t already, please sign up above to get this every day in your emails (and tell your friends + share on social).
Email me at joshbutler.journalist@protonmail.com for tips, ideas or just to chat. You can also find me on Twitter at @joshbutler; on Facebook; and Instagram.
Signing off — stay safe, be healthy, look after yourself and others.
Josh