Originally Posted by
OutsideCAS
In times where the employer has advantage - I agree. But this isn't that time currently. Some companies like to act as if they have a huge talent pool from which to pick - but they do not currently especially the 'bottom feeders'. If your employer (seventhreedriver) was run by crooks then you would have joined most likely without knowing the full facts and what things may really be like once inside? so you cannot really be blamed for signing a contract and then leaving if things are hidden afterwards and you could of had no knowledge? Your behaviour (leaving) here would be one of abandoning a sinking ship and id say you would feel aggrieved in having to pay anything back if things were hidden from you yes?. You signed the contract and normally yes - live with the consequences - but in some small instances there are clown outfits with people that make out at recruitment time as to how great things are and you start with them - and they turn out to be the opposite or break contractual agreement or maybe skew things in the contract to suit themselves. Every good airline and recruiter knows the bad employers and if your not a person who leaves all the time from these companies (your previous employment history will reveal this most surely) then I think that most will see past this issue and especially in the current market where they are unlikely to see 20+ candidates of suitable quality. Most European countries are legally obliged to provide a reference anyway I think and "benevolently worded".
I get your point. Anyone starting with SLX already has a disadvantage (I do not wish to offend anyone, but unfortunately I will: as a recruiter, my first question is: how did you “only” end up in SLX?…) 320 TR pilots are available for decent employers from EU LCCs. As a candidate, you would need to get ahead of these pilots. Hard, if you are considered “problematic”. When you are on a job interview, all we care about is: 1: will you crash our planes. 2: how are you as a person to work with. No one cares about your personal issues with your previous management. It doesn’t matter, what or who is legally right: all that will be in a recruiter’s mind is: will this guy just stand up and leave if something doesn’t go according to his/her liking (just like before).
About the reference letter: saying that he was working here from/to, but did not honor the notice period would be just the truth - I do not believe it is illegal. Training bonds on the other hand should not be part of an employment contract but a separate document.
Finally, never assume that you will never meet the pilots again who you pissed off…