Originally Posted by The Dominican

Several things you do need to understand about working abroad as an expat pilot...!

Things vary of course depending on what region and company you choose to target but some issues are common between most jobs abroad...!

Your legal standing is fussy at best..! Some jobs do hire directly (direct employment with the airline) and others hire through an agency but in all cases the laws that govern your employment are not meant to protect YOU! as an expat, you have little to no recourse against the company in case of a problem or an incident...!

No bidding system to speak off....! I work in a company that allows me to bid my days off but I have no control over what I will do when I'm at work..., and my job is probably the only job out there that gives me the freedom to choose my days off..., most jobs out there will assign you everything from your duty, the city pairings and even the times of the year when you can take your leave.., and in some cases the leave is cancelled due to staffing and there is nothing you can do except quit..., and even that is a headache in some places since the company will make it tough for you to get records and documents that you will need to move along to another job.
In the vast majority of the cases the worst duties, most tiring trips and parings will be done by the expat pilots....., that is a given in just about every job out there!

Local jealousy......! This is an issue that will manifest itself in many different ways..., from the number of upgrades per year, to the requirements to upgrade, to the possibility (or not) to switch to another A/C, to the hotels where you will be staying...., and even the duration of current benefits that could be cut or changed because the local pilot group on the last meeting didn't like the fact that you get breakfast in that particular hotel...., yes! It can sometimes be that petty! And again..., there is nothing that you can do.

Job security...? There is none! Period! End of story...., most (if not all) have the politics of that game "Whack-a-mole" you raise your head and it gets beaten down again...!

You are not there to make a difference nor to improve their operation...! Many have tried to make "things better" just to find themselves in a pickle jar..., it's their train set! You play when and how they say you will and in the comments section of training documents when they ask you to give your opinion about the training process, what items you would like to see in next years recurrent, or any questions along those lines you write....: "I have no comments except thank you for a great training session" and go play a round of golf or have a pint or two! The least your name is known at the office, the better!

Be NICE! To everyone in the company, from the lady mopping the floor to the costumer service agents..., specially to the cabin attendants, they are the preferred source of intelligence gathering about the pilots.

The contract is written in toilet paper....! They can (and often do) change their minds about what you were promised..., from your base, aircraft type, upgrade timeframe...etc. nothing that was written is necessarily bound to happen!

Not all is bad evidently because if that were the case many of us wouldn't still be doing it...., but expat work suits some and not others. You do get to fly very well maintained airplanes (I see an MEL or CDL about once or twice a year) with lots of gas everywhere you go and in the majority of the cases, captain's authority still means something, some contracts out there are very lucrative and there are a few that will pay the local taxes for you..., this is a big advantage for the folks from the US!

Good luck with your decision!