Anyone who can at short notice attend a three week technical course which, whilst being free and unbonded is unpaid has two advantages over some of his peers. It might be reasonable to suppose that he is a trifle flush and, more importantly, available immediately or, in the vernacular, unemployed.
In the run up to the spring hiring season I should have thought that any small company would prefer unencumbered and enthusiastic candidates rather than those who are already in employment and whose commitment to come on board the Eastern Jetstream might be in greater doubt than those who have literally little to loose.
So, whilst not specifically condoning the policies of Eastern; I can quite understand the rationale behind their recruitment programme. I agree that the sum of £15k is absurd for a primitive little machine such as a J41 or even the half glass Saab 2000, but that's a figure driven by market forces, an encumbrance which afflicts even university undergraduates - there is perhaps a parellel between an ATPL and an MA if one might express the former in terms of an academic degree?
I do wonder, with a rather jaundiced eye, how many out there would willingly undertake a three week unpaid conversion course on, say a 737/300 or perhaps an A320, were they to believe that such devotion to the pursuit of knowledge would well equip them in the eyes of an interview panel at Ryan, Easy or whomever? I would hazard a guess that most employed pilots seeking to further their careers by such means would jump at such an opportunity, even to the extent of using their leave for such a purpose. I cannot say that I see too much abhorrent in a company offering the same sort of opportunity to pilots who are, by my original conjecture, likely to be unemployed, available and perhaps even a trifle desperate.
From a company point of view it seems to me to be an excellent recruitment policy and one which does afford instant advantage to those on the hiring ladder who might perchance be the most disadvantaged of the lot. (I could get cynical on that point, but I might just leave matters for another post.)
On this day upon which the present UK government's guide to prostitution is outlined I think it germane to point out that even these lovely ladies have associations and quasi-unions. Perhaps some appropriate flyer out there could start up a representative body to further their own ends. Some title along the lines of: 'Association of Aspiring Aviators' might be appropriate, dedicated to the interests of fledgling flyers. It is high time, I think, that BALPA had a stable mate dedicated specifically to those pilots who fall outside of the scope of that slightly storm tossed institution.
