If ever there was a time for protecting pay and conditions this was it. Where does the 'take any job' you can argument end? If they are offering £25k a year for an Airbus captain, should the proud recipients of such an offer not be happy and honoured, lest they be on the dole instead? I would suggest we all know the answer to that quesiton. There is clearly a point at which we recognise that the pendulum has swung too much - the question is where to draw the line. My personal view is that Astraeus are a two-bit company with two-bit management whose possible success is a threat to our whole industry. I frankly do not want Astraeus and their fellow travellers to succeed - I wish to seem them well out of the Airbus market. They have nothing to add to our industry and have done a great deal to destroy people's futures. I genuinely feel sorry for the unemployed - but not sorry enough to tell them to take these jobs.
NSF - may i suggest you look at the way easyjet treats its own pilots before you criticise other airlines. The way easy/ctc are destroying T&Cs for FOs is a joke.