I think the comments about the long hours are valid, but equally depend on the person involved. Having flown the FR 900 a year (and in the many years I flew for them I was always within a few hours of the maximum, one time I had to position back on a trip because I didn’t have the annual hours to fly it) and also flown long haul for many years, I found the FR schedule far more tiring. I was tired long haul as well, but not as much. I know others who find the opposite true.
The biggest difference was the bully boy culture in FR, and the constant concealed threats. I never experienced that long haul, though what some of the poor guys are going through now is beyond belief. I don’t believe it is FR doing their crew favours, or suddenly becoming a caring company, it’s simply that they can’t get away with the crap that got pulled in Emirates with the mass redundancies.