I do fly for Aer Arann and wish I could refute what FL450 & SpanwiseGlow have said. Unfortunately, they are both spot on. The attitude to all staff, apart from the few in the ex-Transaer clique, is appalling. The rostering is not only random and unfair, but is used as a tool to keep pilots in line. Dare to object to a series of duties and you can find yourself on a month of 6 am reports. The chief pilot will not, under any circumstance, support a decision by a captain which is contrary to the wishes of the operations department.
A good indication of working conditions is the retention rate, or otherwise, of staff. What FL450 said regarding the shortage of captains is an understatement. Captains are leaving all bases to find any other employment. This is far above the attrition rate that is normal in regional turboprop operations. What happens when they are short of captains ? The workload on those remaining increases, and all sorts of tricks are found to get around FTLs. The beatings will continue until morale improves.
I should stop now, I have to fly in the morning. I joined the company to get the base I wanted and because I thought I could enjoy a better lifestyle than the Ryanair ratrace. My mistake.
Some of the actual info you asked for now :
Bases : Go for Dublin, as an FO you wont be worked as hard as Galway or Cork.
Hours flown : Dublin FO 50/month. Dublin Capt 80/month. Cork/Galway capt & FO 80 – 100 / month.
Avge Salary after Tax FO : Eur 2600 / month
Crew Morale : A good bunch of guys & gals, but morale is low and falling rapidly.