Royal, you wont get any argument from me on the subject of Government employees being on a gravy train. Here is a good example, to correct a problem with my hands which I inherited from my Irish father I recently went under the knife to get the problem fixed {One hand at a time mind you} After he was done with the sharp things the surgeon asked me when I was flying next, rather sheepishly I said "Is five AM tomorow too early?" On hearing this he burst out laughing and stated, "The last silly servant I did this procedure on recieved a month of on FULL PAY!" Yes, in the case of Silly Servants its gone way too far, but with of many of the upstart airlines the employees do need a strong union, not just for pay but to stop the bullying and presure tactics so common in the industry. they seem to have a gift for selecting the very worst type into management positions.{And yes, we did fly the next day with no problems , mind you I did blame one of my "thumpers" on the hand!}