Originally Posted by
Smoke mountain
despite the current expansion plans they still have problems at their planning departments, Newbes are in line waiting for chance to get on the LH seat, they have been financed by Bahrain Labour scheme,around 100 of them where i see that they can fix their shortage on the other hand facing problems with their staff on employe's benefits ,
All leaves were canceled at least on A320 fleet as far as i am told, The 787s are flying to LHR daily on both flights, they have booked slots from Boeing so they cant cancel as they don't have enough pilots to spare from any fleet,They cancelled their Cseries order, what made it worse is starting new 8 destinations without being prepared !
All this is merely the tip of the iceberg... Leave cancellations have now been extended to the end of September and are rumoured to be extended to the end of the year. What management once again fail to realise is that annual leave is of vital importance to most pilots and their families. We plan our families life around this. I believe that these latest cancellations are not ad hoc and have been planned for months, if not years. It does not require a brain surgeon to realise that when you expand the fleet by 40% you will need to increase the number of pilots to fly them. They have had years to do so and haven’t. And now, the pilots pay the price yet again. Leave balances will once again increase, only to be reduced later next year in the form of forced leave at a time not suitable to the pilot (out of school holidays) and at short notice.
Previous management has been chipping away at the terms, conditions and benefits for years now... No salary increases, reduced staff travel benefits, no school fees increases, reduced medical cover, leave cancellations every year. To top it all off pilot numbers have been kept at absolute minimum, evident from 900 hours year after year. Combine that with a cost of living increase in Bahrain, especially for expats, it comes at no surprise that moral is low.
It is hard to see a way out. Hopefully the new management will manage to tackle these issues effectively and quickly.
Time will tell.
Regards
Charles