Former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has spoken out about the homophobic attacks he faced for his vocal support of the ‘Yes’ vote during Australia’s 2017 marriage equality plebiscite. Joyce, who is openly gay, described incidents where he felt deliberately targeted by prominent Australians, including then-Immigration Minister Peter Dutton.
During an interview on The Briefing podcast, Joyce recounted a business breakfast in Perth where a pie was thrown in his face. He stated, "It was a homophobic attack, and it was deliberately set up to show outrage about my support for marriage equality." Joyce noted that while many CEOs signed a letter supporting the government legislating marriage equality, he was singled out.
He recalled Peter Dutton telling him to "stick to your knitting" after Joyce publicly supported marriage equality. Additionally, former tennis player Margaret Court announced a boycott of Qantas due to his stance. Joyce commented on the boycott, noting that Virgin CEO Richard Branson had supported marriage equality longer, questioning Court's targeting of Qantas specifically.
Joyce, who is promoting his new memoir "Riding the Jet Stream," also discussed his decision to move to Australia from Ireland in the 1990s, citing more accepting attitudes towards gay people. He recalled his early career in Ireland, where his employer at Aer Lingus referred to it as a "very good catholic airline," indicating an environment not conducive to being open about his sexuality. He moved to Australia in 1996, joining the now-defunct airline Ansett Australia, and met his husband, Shane Lloyd, in Melbourne.
Joyce came out publicly in 2010, two years after becoming CEO of Qantas. He shared experiences of receiving homophobic emails, recounting how his personal assistant was once in tears due to the volume of such messages. He expressed a desire to be seen as a CEO who "happens to be gay," rather than solely "the gay CEO," emphasizing that his sexuality did not define his professional capabilities.
Despite his personal feelings about not wanting to be defined by his sexual orientation, Joyce acknowledged the positive impact of being a visible role model. He stated, "People need to have role models out there." He highlighted that many gay individuals still do not come out at work and that the community experiences higher rates of suicide. Joyce expressed satisfaction in having potentially helped by providing a role model, demonstrating that being gay does not limit professional achievement.
Joyce retired as Qantas Group CEO in September 2023 after 15 years. His tenure concluded amidst various legal challenges for the airline, including issues related to "ghost flights," mass layoffs of ground crew, and a class-action lawsuit concerning compensation for canceled flights between 2020 and 2022. His memoir also delves into these controversial aspects of his final decade at the company.