Must know for prospective Dragonair pilots
MUST KNOW FOR PROSPECTIVE DRAGONAIR PILOTS - the Standard Contract
Effective from 1 April 2012, all pilots recruited by Dragonair will be employed on the Standard Conditions of Service (CoS) regardless of background or experience. *The Standard COS was unilaterally introduced by the company, without input and consultation with the Dragonair Pilots Association (DPA). *The DPA has attempted to rectify this without success this far.
The Standard CoS is an inferior contract compared to the Expatriate B Scale that all previous pilots recruited from overseas were offered. *Cadet entry and Local citizens are employed on a 'Local' CoS, which is at a lower total remuneration than the Standard CoS and Expatriate CoS.
Standard CoS Details
The Standard CoS is made up of three parts;
1. *Part 1 - contains Contractual Agreements that affects your condition of service and will only be changed with your consent,
2. *Part 2 - contains Company Policies that is written for your information only. *It does not confer contractual rights to you and may be unilaterally amended or removed by the company at it's sole discretion, and
3. *Part 3 - Agreed Policies which are agreements between the DPA and Dragonair. *Agreed may only be amended after mutual agreement between the DPA and Dragonair.
Unfortunately benefits and provisions that may affect your decision to join Dragonair, such as Credit Hour Provisions, Child Education Allowance Policy and Medical Benefits are now Part 2, which means they can be amended or removed unilaterally if and when the company sees fit. *
Importantly your flying hours could be amended from 75 per month (as currently set) to 85 without your approval, or a salary increase. *Housing and Education are very expensive in Hong Kong, and the medical benefits have not been adequately *increased for over 15 years. *
Conclusion
All currently employed pilots were given the opportunity to sign over to the Standard CoS. *
However due to the 'open to change' nature of the Standard CoS, the overwhelming majority of the pilots employed on the Local CoS did not switch over to this Standard CoS. *This despite it providing provision for SUBSTANTIAL increases to Child Education Allowance and Special Allowance compared to the current Local CoS of around HKD 20k to 30 k per month.
The Standard CoS is about 40% below the Expatriate CoS.
The DPA advises all prospective new joiners to study and evaluate the Standard CoS prior to accepting employment with the Dragonair and consider the impact *it could have on your career and lifestyle in Hong Kong.