Goflynow

If you have to sign a training contract to get a job are you bound to that contract even if God forbid you lost your medical for some reason?

Or other clauses that may be in the pilots favor.

Sorry new to this, just had the question in case I run up against having to sign something.

Thanks

Pirot

Read the training contract to find out how it's paid out if ended early. I was terminated after 6 months from a job once with a $15000 training contract. I had to pay the employer $7500. My current job has a more reasonable $7500 training contract that is pro rated if you leave early. I don't know what happens if you lose your medical or are terminated. I don't have a copy of that contract to reference. It would be a good question to ask whoever is having you sign a training contract. Most training contracts cover the cost of Flight Safety or Simuflight.

Cubdriver

Absolutely, whatever the contract says is precisely what the company's lawyer who sues you has to work with to sue you. If there is nothing in it about the pilot rights in various extenuating situations, then there are none in most cases. In case you don't know, most pilot training contracts are the pilot's worst nightmare if and when they fail to meet the requirements and are sued. They are usually written grossly in the company's favor by their lawyer, and just about never have fairness to the pilot in mind. You should read and consult with a contract lawyer for you before signing ANY pilot training contract (easier said than done). Ask him or her what happens if you fail to meet your end of the contract for ANY reason, not just quitting. No pilot would sign a training contract if they did this I assure you, they are so grossly written in favor of the company. I would at least try and have a clause or tow added things like losing a medical or getting fired thrown in. The company still has the right to say "take it or leave it" and since pilots are usually a dime a dozen at the entry level and have no union or legal defense going in, they hardly are willing to change a thing. But at least you'll know the score if you talk to the lawyer first.

Come to think of it, we ought to cook up a standard pilot training contract and sticky it here for our readers to use as a template for clause addition and general guidance. Maybe we'll do that at some point. In the meantime, consult a local contract lawyer about it.

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There have been several long threads on this at APC in the last year, use the search box to find them.

JohnBurke

Have to sign it? As in if you're forced at gunpoint to sign it?

If you don't like the terms offered by a given employer, then pass and go elsewhere. How could an employer force you to sign?

There are many jobs that require signing; if you want the job, you'll agree to the terms of the training bond or contract. Your option is to take the job and sign, or walk away.

Nobody is forcing you to take the job.

If you do sign it, you're obligated to the agreement that you've made.