Considering they have a very wide variety of nationalities (recent flight had 21 spoken languages; many from the West; their heavily attended "job fairs"; the number of applicants far exceeding the openings; and the consistently high level of service leads me to believe they offer a competitive and rewarding workplace and opportunities. Is Dubai, and by extension EK, like the "West"? Of course not. Neither is China or India or about 75% of the globe.
The Aussie EK F/A I spoke with thought I was a fair deal, especially given the tax environment in Oz. As did several others that work in the flight ops office.
GF