Thank You Emirates

[Pixy]

Email out from JA today on increases in some allowances.

A respectable 5% on Utilities and around 10% on Education. Transport as yet unknown but apparently gone up.

Rentals are rising along with property prices in Dubai now however over the past year they have been relatively static. EK could have kept utilities on hold but seem to have taken recent trends into account. They may be enticing more to leave company accommodation as perhaps there is a squeeze there. I will certainly look at this aspect.

Again they could have held off on Education until the fees for the new year were announced by schools. However something has driven this to be reviewed earlier. It is only in September that the new allowance becomes applicable however it is good news to some to know in advance what the allowance will be for planning purposes or to make assessments on joining or leaving. Some FO's were paying a good chunk to keep kids at school and hurting as there was no increase in allowance last year while the schools made large increases. This was causing some financial distress and prompting a re-evaluation on remaining here.

Cannot comment on transport. Dont get it but petrol prices have risen sharply over the past year so it was high time this was reviewed.

Inflation has been growing in Dubai at an alarming rate. The dirham has been devaluing alarmingly due to the US warped financial policy and corruption. It is encouraging to see an employer take this into account and adjust. (I'll leave the debate as to if it is enough or not to others)

However this is good news nonetheless. Any increase is welcome from a financial perspective but perhaps more importantly the demonstration that EK values its employees and takes current financial trends seriously is the better gift.

Thank you Emirates

[kotakota]

And you are ?....... Manager of which department ? I reckon 10% would barely make up for inflation.

[Schnowzer]

You'll go straight to hell for that posting! I agree, won't cover the school fees but a step in the right direction for which I am happy.

[donpizmeov]

Isn't it just different coloured lipstick on the education pig? The allowance now contains the transport allowance, so only an increase if your kids don't catch the bus. No change if they do. This allowance is now 4 years out of date. :ugh:

The Don

[White Knight]

The transport allowance being included in the 'new' education allowance hides the fact that the education part of the allowance has risen by a mere 2,000 AED:ugh:

[cerbus]

Emirates has to do something to attract pilots to come to the sand. Unofficially there was 21 pilots to resign in June. I don't know if that is 21 that have left the company or 21 that turned in their papers in June either way it is to much for a growing airline.
One would have to be a fool to join on the A330 fleet and that is where they are the most short.
Although I am very surprised about the rise for housing and education it does not come close to keeping up with the rise in the last three years.
Emirates will have to seriously consider a mid year pay raise to attract qualified pilots. In that time frame inflation will be another 4%-5% higher and the qualified pilot pool will be pretty close to empty then.

[jimmyjetdriver]

"warped financial policy and corruption"??? Not sure what to make of that. Hang on to your US dollars, I am actually getting more bang for my money against the Taka. The last thing I would do is hold on to euros. The US is not bailing out Mississippi or Texas, giving away hard earned money from New York or California. Just my opinion, but hold on to greenbacks. "Corruption"? Are you serial? Sure, their fiscal policy of deregulation was horrible, but the past is no indicator of what will be . BTW, some of us in other Asian places keep turning down the Gulf, pretty much because we can send home more money from less developed countries. Sure would be nice to fly a shiny new jet, though.

[harry the cod]

Pixy

Just a straightforward question please. Are you a property owner here in Dubai? My feeling is yes or that you have some vested interest in rising prices.

Whilst some areas, mainly villas, have similar rents to a few months ago, the continued surplus within the market of 'luxury apartments' is seeing a continuous decline in rental values for these types of property. This will undoubtedly have an effect on all types of property over the next year or so as more stock enters the market. The vast majority will have to be rented as the values will be far less than people paid for these delayed projects, most bought around the peak or just before. Very few will be flipped. Less than 20% will be occupied by the owner. (my rough opinion, not based on any data)

In fact, a colleague of mine who's recently moved into a 3 Bed villa in the Ranches thought he'd bagged a great deal by holding off until now. He was slightly pissed off when the next door neighbour moved in 3 months later into a better finished villa for around 10% less per year. He told me that was over 12K difference. That was last month. I'm not sure if the summer has anything to do with it, it may well do. Perhaps someone in the know can enlighten us?

I have no hidden agenda, just reporting from first hand. You may be able to provide evidence to the contrary.

Harry