Originally Posted by
DontLookDown
It isn’t just millennials. A lot of pilots work 40+ year careers. Anyone from any generation who has been flying for the last 20 years has felt the same hard times.
The main thing the article stresses is how the negative events disproportionately effect people who are early on in their careers.
Millennials, by definition, were born 1981 to mid 1990s. That means the oldest ones were just trying to start their careers in 2001. They were just getting somewhere in 2009. Some were finally just getting to their dream airline right about now.
So most haven’t even had the chance to be furloughed 3 times. Instead, they just were stuck with no job after college because no one was hiring. When they did start hiring they worked for poverty wages before getting furloughed. Then they finally got their lucky break and had the last 4-5 years of mass hiring which propelled them through the regionals and many have just finally made it to a major and will be unemployed again for 2 or 3 years.
The main takeaway being that the average millennial who started this journey immediately after high school will not be at a major, with enough seniority to be furlough proof, until they’re in their late 30s or early 40s.
I agree with your points. Those born around 1980 seemed to have had it the worst in that regard. I know some who didn't clear six figures until upgrading at a ULCC in the last few years and those guys where in their late 30s. As far as myself, I finished flight school back in the 08/09 era and then worked in a restaurant for two years after until getting my first flying gig. The 90s babies who did the flight school > CFI > regional FO (incl. gigantic bonuses) track with no major gaps still kinda floors me to be honest, although good for them.
Even though I was never furloughed back then, one very important lesson I learned from those times was the value of seniority. I'm not knocking the legacies as they are excellent jobs, but they have ridiculously large size pilot groups and accruing any kind of seniority to be safe from furlough takes years if not decades. It is very much a gamble. Three years at a ULCC has put me halfway up the list and into the left seat, fairly safe from furlough at this point. I consider myself quite lucky.