On the very thin base of argument being presented here, you could equally say that aviation pay and T&C's could be that of the country of manufacture of the aircraft - that then leads to saying that shipping companies should give their staff the wages and T&C's of the country that built the ships.
Neither of these work as a proposition any more than paying local staff around the world the same as HQ based or paid staff get. The wages and T&C's of any people around the world, employed in vitually any industry, is that of the local rate for the skills involved. This is linked to the need that anyone in a given country has, in terms of income to live in accordance with their needs and status for a given job. If you don't pay enough, you don't get either the quantity or quality of worker desired and your product suffers accordingly, as does your operation. What you get has no relevence to them or their lives.
The airline industry grew alongside and in competition with the shipping industry. Whilst in the early years of the 1920's, the great shipping lines were the flag carriers of the nations and the vast majority of employees were on the vessels, hired and paid by Head Office, they employed a large network of local arms length employees around the world in the form of agents, which was and still is to the benefit of both parties and the economy of the countries in all forms of international trading.
Now in the twentyfirst century, through various competitive and financial pressures the shipping industry has evolved into establishing its operating bases and costs around the 'flags of convenience', to achieve the greatest base profit and possibly the most easiest judicial setup - so Lufthansa could decide that its flag and HQ address, should be that of the Congo, with all staff being paid a fair congolese wage, other than those elsewhere in the world, who are of course under their local law, who would also be paid an 'overseas' living allowance, to bring them up to the normal levels of pay for the country in which they were working. Anyone care to join Aer Lingus and get the increased levels of taxation and other reduced 'benefits' about to be applied?
It has to be said that this whole publicity puffball dreamt up by Unite, is a personal ego trip by Len Mc, for the glory of the cause of bringing another UK industry to a standstill and bringing down the Government, assisted by two minor squeakers, Amicus/CC89, who are now looking for trouble and being driven by a marxist group and, of course our old manic depressive Bassa, who have found that they don't rule the world after all, but will do anything to hurt BA and WW.
Whew - Apologies, that was longer than I thought!! E&OE
