It is all relative and they do have, apparently, a ton of applicants. But hey also had to reduce the requirements a few years ago and are now hiring pilots with 2500 hours!
I would hope that the Asiana accident will have raised some head in EGHQ. Not in flt ops, because I think they look only short term (bonus'), but at the upper levels. I don't think EK is at all like Asiana but over time, as it grows and if it loses its experience then it becomes an issue.
More people are certainly leaving. In the last 3 months, for the first time, I've flown with at least 4 FO's who are leaving or looking hard to leave. Not complainers--just pilots who realized this is not for them.
The younger new hires, under 30-35, have to decide whether stay and make a career or bug out now to get in the seniority line somewhere that they can spend a career. The American guys are a good example of this (though the 4 FO's I mentioned were all Europeans).
The other issue is that as people become unhappy they start to look elsewhere. At first out of simple curiosity, then with more purpose. They discuss it with the wife, she looks and starts weighing the options and slowly many of those options become a possible plan then are actioned.
This thought process is going on a lot now at EK and, on an individual level, it builds and builds until the decision is almost made for them! The get fed up enough that they leave. Not on a spur of the moment decision but based on a few years of declining conditions and the momentum that comes from 'just looking around'. The momentum builds, the wife gets on board...and bye bye.
I find many of the pilots I know who have left or are planning to are looking to get back home. EK has become intolerable for them and they look for an alternative. Pay doesn't matter anymore. They'll take a pay cut, commute etc. In most cases pay is as good or better than EK as well!
This is important---EK may pay more but these pilots are looking for a better life, better work-life balance, to go home etc etc.
Now you have the SFO accident and huge growth in Asia and the requirement for EXPERIENCED pilots is growing daily. They don't want pilots with 2500TT they want experienced captains and EK has a lot of them. A lot that are fed up.
My guess is that these airlines, especially those in China, will start making the packages more attractive.
Here's what I would do:
Most contracts in China are $20,000-$25,000/month and vary around an average of 4 weeks on, 2 weeks off.
I'd divide by 2, take a $1000 off (extra training) and offer $9,000-11,000/month with 2 weeks on 3-4 weeks off. Also offer 75% contract and 66% contracts. Possible overseas pseudo bases where your flights would start out of airports closer to your home. ETC ETC
They'd have almost every pilot over the age of 45 at EK interested. In other words--all the experience pilots, who are fed up, mostly financially stable but too young to retire and looking to go home.
If I was EK I would be more concerned about keeping experienced captains who know EK, know the routes and can do the job. Yup, the can save a bit on pay scales but I don't think it is worth it.
EK cannot afford an Asiana or worse.