I think we should bring the discussion back to basics, there's way too much misleading information circulating and it's very unfair and childish given the seriousness of the subject.
Let's put things straight once for all:
How do you expect me to live on my £90,000 a year
Well at today's exchange rate 90.000 Sterling equals 105.000 euros so: 105.000 divided by 12 months equals 8750.
If it's a gross figure let's subtract 30% tax from it (let's pretend you live in a very tax favourable country with a low tax regime) and we come up with 63.000 sterling or 73.000 euros that equals to 5250STG/6083EUR per month.
To these figures you have to subtract health insurance,private pension, loss of licence, car park, uniform, hotels, meals, transportation just to name the money that needs to be spend just to be able to work.
If it's a net figure you should have made 136.000 EUR gross which is what a BRK floater would make with 950 hours and 30% tax (I whish...).
My full month's holiday, plus two 13 day breaks a year are also making it verry dificult to take the family away
The other day I spoke with an F/O who had his 13 days allocated when he didn't want them and the month after he got his full month off also unwanted....great for the family if he had one but pretty bad for his finances (BRK contract) because that left him broke for 2 months when F/O's are complaining for low hours/income.
Also pretty bad because his next annual leave is in 8 months.
I agree my p60 was well over 90k and 5/4 works well for me.
See the numbers above, making 6000EUR/month as a Captain for 900 hours/year without even a pension scheme isn't really something to be proud of.
Oh the 5/4 system works fine for you?
Why don't you ask most F/O's who are on STBY most of their ON days making ZERO money on BRK contracts that they were forced to sign?
Or why not asking those guys who joined FR for their fantastic 5/4 system just to find themselves in some of the new italian bases with a 5/3?
The management has surely succeeded in the "divide&conquer" techniques given the extremely short sighted and selfish comments some of you are posting here.
This battle is starting in the UK but it's about the whole company and its 33 bases, get a good sleep tonight and try to look a bit further than your noses tomorrow.