Of course it is IMHO not just the wages/salary, one way CASA could greatly improve both the Life of an LAME and also SAFETY (unless they have done so very recently and nobody told me
) is to legislate some sort of maximum duty hours.
It is crazy that there is NO limit at all to duty time, I could never understand what is the use of having very strict duty times for Pilots, IF the LAME maintaining and certifying for the Aircraft has NO duty limits.
Over the decades I have had many that were unavoidable, like if you are away on a breakdown or engine change or something, but there should be a duty time limit even if it was say 24 hours or even longer, something.
I have been on a station outside of Australia where we had to do an A check, it meant being there working on the check all night, then after some 16-17 hours as the only LAME I had to stay another 4 hours to certify for and despatch the Aircraft.
Even worse on another off shore contract, I had to travel with the Aircraft to certify for it over legs of 2/13/13/2 hours, a duty time of over 36 hours. Okay I was supposed to be "resting" most of the time on the 13 hour legs, but I was just so tired, particularly on the last transit.
The Pilots, working under the same CASA, had 3 different Crews. In fact on the last turnround I could hardly even keep my eyes open while doing the fuelling and preflight, and I asked the Pilots if they would give the Aircraft an extra good look over as well, they said they trusted me which was a compliment but I was just so tired, they were the original Crew who had rested at a Hotel after the first 2 hour leg plus the 3rd Crew deadheading home.
Anyway, if CASA really want to ensure they don't run out of LAMEs, how about fixing some of these anomolies?
PS. I am NOT complaining, I am out of all that now anyway, just pointing out ways CASA could help.