Alan Joyce (executive)

Early life and education

Joyce was born and raised in Tallaght, now a suburb of Dublin, but a separate village at the time of his birth. His mother was a cleaner and his father worked in a tobacco factory. Joyce and his three siblings attended university.

Joyce attended Dublin Institute of Technology and Trinity College, Dublin. He graduated with Honours, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Science (Physics and Mathematics) and a Master of Science degree in Management Science. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society.

Career

Joyce worked at Aer Lingus, the flag carrier of Ireland for eight years, where he held a wide spectrum of positions in sales, marketing, information technology, network planning, operations research, revenue management and fleet planning. In 1996, he left Aer Lingus to join the now-defunct Ansett Australia.

In 2000 he joined Qantas. At both Ansett Australia and Qantas, Joyce headed the Network Planning, Schedules Planning and Network Strategy functions. Joyce was appointed CEO of Qantas subsidiary Jetstar Airways in October 2003.

Joyce became CEO of Qantas on 28 November 2008. He is a former Director of Orangestar Investment Holdings Pte Limited (holding company of Singapore-based Jetstar Asia Airways and Valuair) and Jetstar Pacific Airlines Aviation Joint Stock Company (in Vietnam). On 29 October 2011, as a result of continuing industrial unrest following the announcement of job losses and structural changes at Qantas, Joyce grounded the entire Qantas mainline fleet.

The Australian named Joyce the most influential business leader in 2011. Yet a poll following his controversial 2011 grounding of the Qantas fleet showed the action has increased negative public perception of the airline. In 2011, Joyce's remuneration was increased 71 per cent from $2.92 million in 2009-10 to $5.01 million and he was granted 1.7 million Qantas shares under a long-term incentive plan. His reported comments that his salary was "conservative" were criticised by the Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA).

Pieing incident

On 9 May 2017, Joyce was delivering a speech to a business breakfast event in Perth, when a lemon meringue pie was pushed into his face by an unknown assailant, later identified as Tony Overheu, a Western Australian farmer and Christian. Overheu, aged 67, gave a false name to police after the incident, but subsequently apologised for humiliating the CEO claiming that he pied the business figure due to his own personal belief that Joyce had overstepped the line in his gay marriage advocacy and the assailant's response simply reflected community push-back. Overheu was later charged with common assault, trespass, damage and giving false details to police, and banished from his church.

Overheu appeared before Perth Magistrates Court on 7 July 2017, pleaded guilty to charges of assault and trespass, damaging the lapel microphone Joyce was wearing, and giving a false name to police after the incident. Overheu was fined $3,600, as well as ordered to pay $269 in compensation for the lapel microphone and $188 in costs. Overheu's lawyer said his client had had "physical and personal difficulties" in recent years, including mental health issues.

Honours and awards

This honour awarded for "eminent service to the aviation transport industry, to the development of the national and international tourism sectors, to gender equity, inclusion and diversity, and to the community, particularly as a supporter of Indigenous education"

Personal life

Joyce is openly gay and lives in the inner-Sydney suburb of The Rocks with his partner, a New Zealand man with whom Joyce has been in a relationship since 1999. In 2011, Joyce was successfully treated for prostate cancer.