Vne98
Yeah, Cathay avoided the problem by summarily sacking 49 pilots. That certainly sent the message out loud and clear to anyone in cathay who wanted to address their crap rostering and declining T & C's at the time.
Now several years later, the 49'ers have been all but abandoned by their union because they are becoming an inconvenience financially, and complicating the communication process with the company with regard to current T & C's.
So they have yet again proved the current managment and employee (pilot) theory. Rule by fear and greed. Divide and conquer. Seems to work everytime when dealing with a self centred workforce as pilots continually show themselves to be.
So to answer the question, yes this is how most Asian airlines are heading. To prove the point, we are still getting new joiners from many asian airlines. This only goes to show that despite the declining conditions at EK, it is still better than many.
Cathay and Dragonair are notable exceptions, not because their management is any better than ours, but because despite their recent turmoil, they are still getting paid at around twice what EK pilots are being paid