Alot of crew left for Emirates before because of the pay diference. I was very close to doing so myself.That has now been rectified and EK crew are coming down to us.
Of course there are !!!!ty things about working for EY but for me the positives are.
After 2 or 3 years with Etihad you can be CM in EK you are plugging away in economy for 2 years.
Cost of living in Abu Dhabi ALOT cheaper than Dubai.
No Dubai traffic.
Longer layovers.