Hi CTL,
That IS a well balanced post, but I do disagree with a couple of points-
Your first paragraph seems to actually confirm what I said. i.e Emirates have not broken the letter of the contract (Increments only ever went to ten years, didn't they? So anyone here ten years was on top increment anyway), and if they did, the respondent has redress in the courts of the country the agreement was signed in.
Of course we don't have legal redress for reduction in conditions the company weren't legally bound to provide. Dissapointing, certainly, but you can only ever count on what is in black and white. An "Implied" right, like a verbal contract, isn't worth the price of the paper it's written on!
As to FTLs, sorry, but EVERY company (bar one) I have worked for has treated then as a target. At easyJet we had to sub-charter in aircraft every year as the majority of our pilots hit their 900hr limit. At Ansett we had guys hitting the 1000hrs. Not saying it's right or good, but it isn't unique by any means.
Factoring is a crock and I suspect will not last given some time.
Simulator and Ground duty IS duty for the purpose of max duty time and required days off/ rest periods. It is NOT credit time for pay purposes. Again, this varies in other companies. In AN you got credit for Sim, at EZ you didn't. In NONE of them did it count towards monthly or yearly hour limits.
Yes we will retire some aircraft, but the current orders do mean a substantial net gain in numbers. But, my crystal ball is no clearer than yours. Could be four years, could be twelve. I agree that anyone joining now better be resigned to a sizable spell in the RHS.
Totally correct that we don't have anything like the legal framework and protections we do at home.Anyone coming HAS to understand they are coming to a place with a completely different set of values when it comes to the law, employment, fairness and morality.
That is one of the things that makes Australia such a great place to live.
And THAT is one of the reasons Australian airlines can be such S@#T employers and still get as many applicants as they need!!