I'd like to try and set a few things straight on the CTC/FlexiCrew situation, particularly to ezydriver. I speak as one of the 22 who were laid off at the end of last summer, before this whole FlexiCrew concept came to light.
When I started training with CTC, the vast majority of their 'graduates', as they like to call them, went to easyJet and did their six months and then were offered a full time contract on completion. No questions asked. I still hold a letter of intent to that effect from easyJet, offering me - subject to satisfactorily completing the six months - an offer of employment. The company reneged on that intention approximately 2 months before the expiry of my 6 months' 'line experience'.
I highly, highly resent the assertion that "The cadets are in a vulnerable position because they chose to put themselves there." Those that are currently in this position are there because they started training when the CTC route was a proven, safe and accepted way in to the company. You did what was asked of you, you were given a full time job. This FlexiCrew concept, which I absolutely deplore, only came to light after the 22 CTC pilots were told they wouldn't have the full-time jobs they had originally been offered. The cadets now in this position put themselves there in good faith - when they started out on the course, they had no reason to believe, assuming they performed to the required standard, that it would not lead to a full time contract with a well-performing and expanding airline. In response to the suggestion that "no Cadet this year was given the impression that they would be employed beyond winter and yet they still took it", I would ask, what would you do in their position? With no other offers forthcoming from ANY other carriers, coupled with the prospect of other CTC 'partner airlines' laying off staff, would you turn down those initial six months? Please don't lay the blame at the feet of the cadets - they are not responsible for this FlexiCrew recruitment mess.
Those of us laid off at the end of last year went to BALPA for assistance. BALPA agreed to look at our case, umm-ed and ahh-ed a bit and eventually told us there was nothing they could do. The tone of the response from some members of the company council was akin to having the door banged in your face. There was sympathy at first, but the end line was "these guys knew what they were getting themselves into, and that's that. Sorry chaps, we have more important things to deal with." As has been mentioned, the CC can not represent cadets with the company because the cadets are not company employees (and, during the period as part of the Cadet scheme, not even CTC employees either), and apparently (I've heard from others, but I haven't investigated myself) CTC refuse to recognise BALPA so apart from the limited 'support' received from BALPA HQ, where do the cadets turn to for help? There is plenty of sympathy and verbal support from other pilots within the company, but nobody is actually able to DO anything.
To the likes of ezydriver, do you have any suggestions? I'm sure the 8 who have just been told they're to be laid off from TCX would appreciate anything you have to offer. Simply saying "but cadets dont stand together and say No in the same way EZY BALPA members don't stand together and say No over piss takes like the crew food and roster disruption." doesn't really hold much weight. If the cadets were to do that, CTC will quite happily offer a handshake and a Basil Fawlty style "well, goodbye!" (And probably "thanks for your money".) Make no mistake, CTC and easyJet hold all the cards in the relationship - the cadets have no power whatsoever, certainly when it comes to saying "no, we won't accept this". IF that ever happened, I imagine CTC and the airlines would tell them to get lost.
As a final note, ezydriver says "Unless we all grow a Spine together and stop the rot, I wouldn't hold my breath". This whole issue was debated at serious length last year on the BALPA boards when it all kicked off, and although there was a lot of harrumphing and finger-wagging, there was a general reluctance to do anything. People were too busy 'keeping their powder dry', as I believe the phrase goes, for debates like crew food and contract captains. Yep, funny isn't it how people were debating at length the action that should be taken in the event that contract captains were taken on, yet when it comes down to contract F/Os, everyone takes a step back. From the debate going on here, it looks like that minor issue might be the one that gradually sneaks up and bites everyone on the behind.