Folks, I have worked at easyJet for many years and am now a fairly senior pilot in the system. Before you all start ranting at me, I am not a manager and have no part in the recruitment process. In order to understand what is going on here, you have to have an appreciation of the environment easyJet operates in. We are in a vicious battle with Vueling, Ryanair, Norwegian, Monarch and increasingly with the legacy carriers who are all upping their game. Ryanair in particular are buying aircraft at a staggering rate and are increasingly placing them in direct competition against us. All these companies have very low cost bases and virtually none have the encumbrance of Trade Unions to deal with. In stark contrast we, mercifully, are very unionised, but are constantly looking for ways to save money to keep us in number one or two positions at most of our airports. Crew costs are a huge factor for us and if easyJet had its way, we would be just like Ryanair. It is possibly no coincidence that a good number of the pilots we have just recruited have come from there but are now very glad to be at easyJet. Much to the annoyance of our big corporate shareholders, we are not having a special dividend this year, and our share price has dropped markedly since our results came out, largely due to fears about our ability to compete against Ryanair. Therefore, there is enormous pressure to battle over every penny and nowhere is that more evident than initial training costs. Put simply, we need to keep the costs down to compete. What is being offered is not p2f, and it is incredibly foolish to say it is. The type rating cost is frankly not reflective of the true cost, but in reality much more associated with keeping the cost of your salary down. So, love it or hate it, that is the way it is. Right now there are few better or safer places to work other than a national carrier. Presumably if you could get a job at one of those you would not be here on PPRuNe having this discussion, so it sounds like this is as good as it going to get. Therefore my encouragement to you is to decide now if you really want to be part of this.
Given there are literally thousands of low-housed pilots without jobs, if you are a cadet and have a place with easyJet lined up, you are unbelievably fortunate and need to just thank God for the opportunity you have been given. If you are an experienced pilot, and already hate easyJet because of the type rating costs, then you are simply going to work for the wrong company. Do both us and yourselves a huge favour and go somewhere else where you will be more appreciated. If, however, you can see your way to just accepting the harsh economics of our world, then come and join us with a great attitude and a willingness to learn. It is a great place to be overall, with new aircraft, interesting routes, good training, and excellent safety culture and some great colleagues to work with. It is not perfect, but if you choose to have a positive attitude you can have a great time.