Don't know what the breaking point is....not like we are fighting a war.
We ARE undermanned; at least it seems so and CC seems to me to operate constantly in crisis management mode. I wouldn't want their job--I don't solve puzzles well. When someone falls out for WHATEVER reason there is a scramble and we are spread so thin this ripples throughout the roster. This seems to be a new normal of operation and lotsa folks making money in overtime. In time manning levels will hopefully catch up.
I neither endorse nor oppose someone working on G days. This won't have a long term effect but might mask a short term problem in manning. If you feel you should answer the phone, do. If you feel you shouldn't, don't. Eventually overtime costs and FTLs will kick in.
If there is a downturn in China things might abate but this is not going to happen. The U.S. economy is and will be buggered by those who cannot leave things alone (and those who got there PHD's in economics from a cracker jack box and never heard of Milton Friedman or Adam Smith) but it will take a while before the effects of this are felt in Asia. Many people traveling; just no one is paying for anything.
The tricky portion for us is we face constantly shifting schedules and need to plan for more likely short range callouts which makes life more difficult.