Unions left with questions after meeting

Unions are seeking clarification on where Qantas will cut more than 2000 jobs following a two-hour meeting with the airline's top brass.

Qantas announced on Thursday that 5000 jobs will go as part of a plan to save $2 billion.

Jobs at Avalon, near Geelong, and a catering facility in Adelaide will go, but union bosses said they were uncertain where a further 2200 jobs would be slashed.

ACTU secretary Dave Oliver told reporters he had left the meeting with more questions than when he entered.

"The company was not able to justify how they came up with the 5000-jobs number," he said.

The unions want Qantas to agree to have an independent expert review the company's operation to see where cuts could be made.

Mr Oliver said the airline disagreed because it already had a number of processes under way.

"The unions aren't pushing for strike action and would rather continue consultation," Mr Oliver said.

It also was unclear what would happen to the company's pilots.

"I'm hopeful that we can avoid any compulsory redundancies," said Qantas pilot Nathan Safe, who is the Australian and International Pilots Association president.

If the government stepped in to help Qantas, which the unions want, "any kind of such guarantee has to be linked to commitments around job security and ongoing employment", Mr Oliver said.

Transport Workers Union national secretary Tony Sheldon said the 26,000 Qantas employees would be worried about their future.

"The company has come to the table without the capacity to say what they're actually up to and how this is going to save one single job in the future," he told reporters outside the meeting.

He said Qantas should consult its workers and not "follow (treasurer) Joe Hockey's demands to crush the living standards and take-home pays of hard-working Australians".

He also questioned whether the board had the capacity to turn the company around, saying it had no strategy.

When asked if Qantas boss Alan Joyce should go, he said that was a matter for the board.

Further meetings will be held next week.