Skipping...I said it was tax deductable not free. I can see from the way I phrased the answer why you were confused.
Until we got the right to claw some of the fee back it was costing us all a genuine 1%. However, we at that time thought it was worth it so we all paid up. Now I get two thirds of my subscription fee back. It’s more than we used to get and a lot better than a poke in the eye with a blunt stick.
The reason for the large subscription fee is because the association is comparatively small. The cost of doing business is not reduced just because you only have a few thousand members. Try to take on the likes of BA legally and the costs will neuter or bankrupt an under funded association in a few days. The bill for the last spat with BA cost considerably more than most individuals can afford, even with a legal cover policy.
Incidentally, what attracted some people to this job was probably some of the remuneration and working conditions that some of the larger companies enjoyed. That was not bestowed upon us by a magnanimous management in some fairytale; it was fought for, tooth and nail by those BALPA members that went before.
If you as an individual don’t feel you have a long-term future in aviation the fee is probably not worth it. But speaking personally and having been in this game for longer than some pilots have been alive, the younger generation need to stand with us and take up the fight to protect careers and future earnings. (Not to mention a decent quality of life) If you don’t then we’re all stuffed and it saddens me…but then I can retire in 10 years and watch in morbid fascination.