Jack
The 3% is not a bonus. It's an increment that is paid to reflect loyalty and seniority. Those airlines that use these scales pay incremental steps yearly, regardless of salary increases. For some bizzare reason, HR have stopped publishing these scales. This is convenient as it now implies the increments should not be paid out automatically. That's a disgrace as far as I'm concerned and the reason why I do not consider it in any way a 'pay rise'.
Whilst I agree that the bonus rules are what they are, to not receive an actual pay increase given the constant rise in the cost of living in Dubai is disappointing. From a Company that's achieved a damn good profit regardless of what the target was is a poor reflection on how it's staff are actually perceived. Thanks for the appreciation letter but words are cheap. That profit of over $600 million would not have been possible without front line staff working their butts off the last few years with cabin crew routinely doing 120 hours per month. Engineers and pilots have also seen increases in productivity with no comensurate rise in remuneration.
Yes it's in our interest to work hard. The Company benefits and by de facto, so do we with job security. However, that argument might work when the chips are down but quite frankly, it's bloody insulting when everyone is working as hard as they are and the Company is one of only a handful to make profit. If I'd been allocated my contractual 42 days of leave, I might have accepted more easily the lack of bonus or pay increase. However, to achieve that profit on the back of bad planning is insulting. I do not doubt for one single minute that all the office staff have been allocated their full annual leave entitlement.
What's the cash reserve they're always boasting about? 15 billion or something? Perhaps a little bit of that could have offset the 200 million that was probably spent on 'Hello Tomorrow', which, for what it's worth, is rather a let down.
Pilots will not leave and I doubt many will even bother to write to JA or AS expressing their disappointment. This will always be the outlet in which to articulate their frustrations. You reap what you sow in this World and already we're seeing this. More failures on upgrades, inexperienced trainers, varying standards, outsourced training venues, less knowledgable and far more inexperienced and unsuitable cabin crew, increasing engineering issues with commensurate reduction in experienced line engineers, dispatch errors due to undermanning in flight planning, managers with little or no empowerment to actually support crew, crew operating sick due fear factor, clinic appointments becoming harder to achieve and so it goes on.
One day, something will break. If the Company don't start consolidating and investing in people instead of being obsessed with growth and profit, profit, profit, that day may be tomorrow. And we will not be saying hello!
Last edited by BYMONEK; 15th May 2012 at 10:32.
Reason: spelling.