It happens everywhere
Our industry is no different to any others in that change takes place and the challenges faced by the people at the coal face change as well, this has always been the way of the world. In a previous life I was in the Merchant Navy and as a 17 year old was often reminded that I had missed the "good old days" with the implication that things were now so easy that any idiot could do the job. The job was changing as it always had done; I'm sure the transition from sail to steam was viewed as a bad thing. Our industry is bound to change even more in the coming years and we have to accept that but also ensure we can adapt as well. Basic skills will always be a requirement and it's up to training departments to ensure that they are not lost and that practising in line operations is not seen as something non-standard. As regards the amount of pay anyone gets for a particular job then it is market forces that dictate the level of remuneration. We are not paid for being on standby to deal with an emergency or critical event but to take people (or goods) from A to B etc. The world does not work on people being paid pro-rata for their skill or responsibility; how could you equate a transplant surgeon to a premier-league footballer in the way they should be paid and there are many different examples of where the pay does not seem to have a relationship to real responsibility.
If someone asked me my opinion of wether it was a good job to try to get into then I would still say yes and certainly more varied than being a Dentist. That being said neither of my sons have shown any inclination to follow my path and that's fine with me as well, they should make their own way in life. The job is different now to what it was twenty years ago and will be quite different in another twenty but you will still see things from the cockpit that will make you turn to your colleague and say "That was worth getting up for".
Last edited by tocamak; 28th Dec 2007 at 10:59.
Reason: spelling