The world order is changing.
Jobs for life is no long a given. Companies boom then disappear, leaving employees with nothing. To succeed as a pilot you will have to be willing to job-hop and maximise your takings wherever you can. Short contracts will be the norm.
The writing is on the wall, seniority is going out, along with security of tenure.
Decent pensions are now unaffordable. Those who have invested in the stock markets have lost big-time.
In many jobs the projections are that you may have to work until you drop.
The unspoken hope is that you work until you are no longer able, retire for a few months, then pass on, saving enormous pension, medical, and social costs.
In my career, two airline employers have failed, one owing me money, another destroying my medical coverage and rebated travel, and owing for company stock promised but never delivered.
I have had the same wife for 35 years, no boat, and live a very modest life on a very modest pension.
The thing is, when I started in aviation, those already there had a “provident fund” that was a 30% non-contributory fund, with accrued interest.
My pension was to be “defined benefit”.
But after 25 years of service, the company was “re-structured” and my pension was changed to “defined contribution”.
Suffice it to say I am now surviving on a pension very much less than I had signed on for and planned on.
It is too late for me to regain all the lost ground, I will have to make the best of what remains, but it will probably be worse for those coming behind me.
The game has changed, and is still changing.
The rules will have to change to reflect this reality.
I expect that methods of evaluating pilot competency and fitness are going to have to change to move up from 1960s technology, to current technology.
The doddering old Aviation MD will be replaced by much more in depth medical tests involving modern technology.
The same will apply to competency checks, computers are much more impartial than people, and do not have ingrained prejudices pro or con.
The old Chinese saying “may you live in interesting times” may well apply.