Position: B-737NG preferably in first class with a glass of champagne and caviar
Posts: 1,969
Quote:
Originally Posted by Readback
Let this send a message to all of you who are considering contract pilot jobs at SIA (or any other carrier).
You are a hired gun and it doesn't matter how long you have been there, or how good a pilot you are, when the downturn comes, you are the first to go. If your contract comes up for renewal, it will not be renewed.
Other than that, enjoy the ride!
Sorry for the thread creep.
While I'm sure his work will continue, airlines abroad don't mix apples and oranges. Pilots, be them direct employed, or contract, are pilots, and that's it.
Off the property they are whom ever they be... as long as it does not bring bad publicity to the company... and that's it too.
As they say... it's not personal... it's only business.
Take a look at what JAL has done to it's long time expat crews.
Let this send a message to all of you who are considering contract pilot jobs at SIA (or any other carrier).
You are a hired gun and it doesn't matter how long you have been there, or how good a pilot you are, when the downturn comes, you are the first to go. If your contract comes up for renewal, it will not be renewed.
Other than that, enjoy the ride!
Sorry for the thread creep.
While that may be true, the time I have spent as a contract pilot have been the best of my career. I have been treated better than I could have ever dreamed of if I had stayed at any US airline. I know I am the first to go and I think you will find that most contract guys understand that.
But really...Look at US Air. How far back are the furloughs going now? 1999? 10 years seniority gets you furloughed. What kind of job security is that? United???
And to be honest, most of the guys that were on contract terms at SIA were offered local terms a while back and didn't take them. If you are making substantially more than local guys, you really can't blame them for letting you go first when times get tight can you?
Last edited by LostInAsia : 11-02-2009 at 09:09 AM.
While that may be true, the time I have spent as a contract pilot have been the best of my career. I have been treated better than I could have ever dreamed of if I had stayed at any US airline. I know I am the first to go and I think you will find that most contract guys understand that.
But really...Look at US Air. How far back are the furloughs going now? 1999? 10 years seniority gets you furloughed. What kind of job security is that? United???
And to be honest, most of the guys that were on contract terms at SIA were offered local terms a while back and didn't take them. If you are making substantially more than local guys, you really can't blame them for letting you go first when times get tight can you?
I don't blame them at all. What a great deal. Hire experienced pilots as temporary help and they are the first to go.
The reason for my post was not for those of us who have participated and understand the system with eyes wide open, rather, it was for those who see the contract job as some garden of eden with job security and a long lasting career at a single airline.
It may work out that way, it may not. The important thing is that you understand what you are getting into before you sign on the dotted line.
Position: B-737NG preferably in first class with a glass of champagne and caviar
Posts: 1,969
I can't think of any contract pilot who has had a sip of the security kook-aide when it comes to contract flying. As a contract pilot, your next flight may very well be your last flight with a particular contract.
It does not make a difference if the agency is PARC, Rishworth, Direct Personel, etal... nor does it make a difference of the airline the contract pilot is assigned to such as JAL, SAI, Air India etal. Most reputable contracting agencies will not hide that a contract is only as good as the airline you are flying for is willing to honor it.
Expat flying is a great deal different than flying for a US carrier. As a contractor, essentially you are self employed. Working for a union carrier, you are at the mercy of management and also the MECs who allegedly have their membership's interest at heart.
The best choice I made was some 20 years ago, left majors, and became an expat. Much better pay overall, better medical benefits, and far greater in the retirement fund. Yeah I know… tomorrow may be my last day of flying with the airline I am assigned to but that’s the way it goes.
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