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Up to 50 Work Safety Officers at Sydney Airport will stop work from 10pm to 1am each night from Monday, September 28 through Thursday, October 1, the Transport Workers Union said on September 28. The four consecutive nightly stoppages add a second front to an airport pay dispute that already stopped screening lanes last week.
The decision facing travelers is how much buffer to build into late night arrivals and early morning departures through Kingsford Smith this week. If your itinerary connects to a sailing, our Sydney Airport to cruise port transfer plan lays out the timed options to the Overseas Passenger Terminal and White Bay.
- Strike window: Nightly stoppages from 10pm to 1am, Monday September 28 through Thursday October 1.
- Who stops work: Up to 50 Work Safety Officers handling tarmac closures and contractor escorts before curfew, per the union.
- Airport position on September 28: Sydney Airport says contingency plans are in place with no expected impact to passengers, flights or operations, which continue as normal.
- Dispute scope: Pay, job security, rostering and access to full time work under a replacement enterprise agreement with contractor Certis.
- Separate action: About 400 Certis security screeners staged two stoppages of two hours each on September 24, with a further three hour screener stoppage planned for Monday.
Four Nights of Stoppages Target the Curfew Window
The new action comes from Work Safety Officers whose duties sit on the airfield rather than at the screening lanes. The Transport Workers Union press release of September 28 says the officers are responsible for closing off the tarmac and airfield and escorting contractors and emergency vehicles in the lead up to Sydney Airport curfew. The union says the strike follows an overwhelming 99 percent vote for legally protected industrial action.
Independent confirmation arrived the same day. Travel Weekly Australia reported on September 28 that the union confirmed the Monday through Thursday night schedule and that the action escalates a dispute with airport security contractor Certis while the parties negotiate a replacement enterprise agreement. The same report carries the airport response that tonight strike is confirmed but operations are expected to continue as normal, and the Certis response that its Sydney Airport employees receive pay and conditions materially above the industry award when assessed as a whole.
Union leaders frame the stoppages as a reaction to years of insecure work at the country busiest airport. TWU NSW secretary Richard Olsen said many officers sit on insecure part time hours with changing rosters, and that workers in safety critical roles should hold secure jobs with decent pay.
The union also points to Sydney Airport record 2024 to 2025 aeronautical profit of 584.3 million dollars, a figure the union attributes to the airport published accounts. It calls on both Certis and the airport to fund better wages through the security contracts.
Safety Officers Form a Separate Group From Screeners
Travelers who followed last week disruption should note that this is a different group of workers taking a different action. The screeners who check passengers and bags staged two hour stoppages on Thursday September 24, and a three hour screener stoppage is planned for Monday September 28, as covered in our Sydney Airport screeners September 28 stoppage update. The new night action involves airfield safety officers instead, and it repeats across four nights rather than a single daytime window.
The practical difference matters because the two groups touch different parts of the journey. Screener stoppages slow the queues at security checkpoints, while safety officer stoppages touch airfield movements around the curfew, including contractor escorts and section closures. Sydney Airport says tonight safety officer stoppage is not expected to affect flights or operations, and no cancellations have been announced for either action. Late night travelers still face the overlap of both actions on Monday night, when the screener stoppage and the first safety officer stoppage fall on the same calendar day.
Timing adds pressure because the stoppages land in a busy school holiday and football travel period. Travel Weekly notes that last week screener action already fell during heavy leisure traffic, and the new Monday to Thursday night schedule extends the uncertainty across the full working week. Passengers on tight connections, including cruise departures from Sydney Harbour, should treat the nightly 10pm starting time as the trigger to recheck their flight before leaving for the airport.
| If you… | What to do |
|---|---|
| Land or depart late at night Monday through Thursday | Recheck your flight status on the evening of travel and allow additional time for airport procedures during the 10pm to 1am stoppage window. |
| Connect to a Sydney Harbour cruise sailing | Build a buffer between landing and sail away and use the timed airport to port transfer options for the Overseas Passenger Terminal or White Bay. |
| Travel with checked bags on a daytime flight | Monitor airline messages for bag handling advice, since Thursday screener action and Monday stoppages both touched ground operations. |
| Hold a time critical onward booking | Watch enterprise agreement talks for any extension past Thursday, since no action beyond Thursday night appears in the sources checked for this story. |
Monday September 28 at 10pm is the first stoppage. Check Monday night flights before leaving and allow extra time, because the screener action and the safety officer action overlap that evening.
Tuesday through Thursday nights repeat the 10pm to 1am pattern. Apply the same recheck routine each night rather than assuming the dispute ended with Monday.
The enterprise agreement talks are the next gate. The union and Certis are negotiating a replacement agreement, so treat any new union or airport statement as the signal for Friday travel rather than projecting further stoppages without a source.
Will my Sydney Airport flight be cancelled during the night strikes?
No cancellations have been announced. Sydney Airport said on September 28 that contingency plans are in place with no expected impact to passengers, flights or operations. Check your airline for the latest status of your specific flight.
Are these the same workers who struck last week?
No. Last week about 400 Certis security screeners stopped work at the checkpoints. The new action involves up to 50 Work Safety Officers with airfield duties such as tarmac closures and contractor escorts before curfew.
Which exact hours are affected?
The stoppages run from 10pm to 1am each night from Monday September 28 through Thursday October 1, according to the Transport Workers Union and Travel Weekly Australia.
What should I do before heading to the airport?
Check your flight status on the evening of travel, allow additional time for airport procedures, and monitor messages from your airline through Thursday night.
