Customs strikes hit international airports this Thursday

LATEST | International travellers should expect severe disruption this Thursday, October 27, as customs staff walk off the job at airports across Australia.

Customs officers at Sydney, Melbourne and Perth international airports will be on strike for 24 hours, starting at midnight on Wednesday, October 26.

Their comrades at Brisbane, Darwin and Adelaide international airports will join them in a shorter two-hour stoppage on Thursday; additional stoppages are slated for Cairns and Gold Coast international airports.

The strikes are part of a continued campaign against the federal government for higher pay.

Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) national secretary Nadine Flood suggests that anyone travelling overseas on Thursday should head to the airport well ahead of their usual time.

PREVIOUS | Industrial action by Customs and Border Protection staff will hit all of Australia's international airports today, Thursday, October 13.

Thousands of Customs officers will walk off the job for up to four hours after talks yesterday failed to settle a pay dispute between the Government and the Community and Public Sector Union, which represents customs officers.

The stop-work action will "significantly affect international airports", says the CPSU. “We would urge people collecting inbound international passengers on Thursday to factor possible delays into their plans."

Inbound passengers are likely to be caught up in long queues – so if you're reading this overseas and are jetting back to Australia on Thursday, be sure to charge your iPod and load up your Kindle with a good book just in case.

Here's a list of when the stoppages will hit each international airport, so at least you'll know if you're likely to be stuck in a queue or can sail straight through... 

Things will also get messy at domestic airports today, with Qantas cancelling 14 flights and delaying a further 38 flights due to rolling strikes by the Transport Workers’ Union – so travellers transferring from an inbound international flight onto a domestic connection with Qantas could be in for a very rough day...

David Flynn

David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.