Wiggy,
Sadly there has been a steady deterioration in T&Cs for future Birdmen going all the way back way beyond when i started out in 2006. Back then I was able to attend a very competitive selection process (3-5% pass rate at the time) and take out an unsecured loan of 50k as a training bond. This bond covered my training costs (inc TR - paid for by the airline) and was then repaid back to me over a period of years when I joined the airline at the end of my training course.
These days, the generation easyJet program has replaced what I did and every year more and more risk/cost is put on prospective cadets. We now find ourselves at the end of the line where it is no longer feasible. Something will have to change going forwards as neither the salary, contracts or T&Cs will merit the initial financial investment. I don't expect it will ever go back to the good ol days, far from it sadly.
From the inside it really feels like this industry is dying. Itīs sad, it really is.