There is a story of one position out there which has attracted pilots from various agencies. This was advertised initially with a choice of roster patterns. Everyone started on the most onerous (6 on 2 off) with the idea being that if you did a few months of this ,you could then ask for 5/3 , 4/4.
It appears that in due course pilots from 1 agency asked for (& were granted) the change to the less intensive pattern in return for less bucks. The pilots from the 2nd agency involved were told it wasn't possible, & that their requests had been refused. . . strange Huh ?
It transpired quite simply that the 2nd agency involved (like the pilot ) would be taking a reduced payment each month & didn't want to reduce their payment, so, stuff the pilots requests & attempt to lie/conceal the real reason for the requests being "denied" (simply they didn't ask).
I have been contacted fairly regularly this last few months by a UK agency for an African gig, which in addition to being one of the less well paid, has an "attractive rotation" of 8wks on /2 off. I have asked every time I am contacted whether they have correlated the lack of interest with the rotation. Agency say they have spoken to the company but they don't want to know. Finally, I guess if no-one goes, they might improve it, but it really will take that to happen for anything to change.
The other problem is that if one asks for a 75% / 66% roster, they think, Hey, we are paying these guys too much, they can get by on 75% salary, lets make that the salary for a 100% roster. Well, only by no-one showing might they eventually realise that 6000€ a month for 8 on/2 off is generally regarded as a p1sstake. Ethiopian seem to have also failed to correlate their constant need to recruit, with their garbage salary, they at least offer 20 on/10 off, but Hey,since when did a Capt's salary on a 737 become 6500$ ?
If we genuinely had/have a shortage of suitably experienced crew, things may (slowly) get better again. That is the one & only thing that will help to take us back (at least a little way) towards the rotations that used to be the norm for these contracts. Lack of bums on seats up front is the only language that works, & even then, they usually try & throw (not even enough! ) money at it ,in preference to figuring out what it is about the contract that no-one likes.
Real earnings in full time positions have taken a dive this last 10years, earnings, & more importantly conditions/rotations , for contract work is even less comparable with how it was. Perhaps one of the reasons for this could lie in the fact that 10 yrs ago there were a handful of agencies vying for business, & should one be offering particularly underwhelming contracts they wouldn't attract too many contractors. Every week I look on flightglobal.com to discover another "agency" (usually in reality a gross gross exaggeration for a computer in someones spare bedroom ? ) has sprung up, offering the same as everyone else, but no doubt accepting less commision, so cheaper for the airline. Sometimes this then mutates into offering less bucks for the same gig (Intaway last year for Corendon springs to mind) so, if anyone is mug enough to sign for them, they have depressed the market rate for all of us for the same contract. In my dealings with several agencies it is rare that I could recommend their services, 1, perhaps at a push 2, have given the impression that my needs had any importance whatsoever. When you have several advertising the same vacancy this is seldom a good sign, interestingly the one I could recommend seem to have always had exclusivity on what they offer, go figure, as they say on the other side of the pond.
Last edited by captplaystation; 13th November 2011 at 19:26.