Interesting article in yesterdays Mail on Sunday, so I guess it has to be true.....
Pilots' pay packages set for take-off
Jeremy Skidmore, Mail on Sunday 29 July 2001
HOLIDAY giant Airtours has dug deep to offer its 420 UK-based pilots a substantial pay deal. It hopes to head off a potentially disastrous summer strike by disgruntled staff.
According to sources, there is 'considerable disquiet' among the charter carrier's pilots, who have seen their pay slip way behind low-cost carriers such as easyJet and Ryanair.
Balpa, the British Air Line Pilots' Association, has agreed a deal with Airtours after months of wrangling and will ballot members on the package in the next two weeks. Details of the pay deal are secret, but sources said the agreement was substantial and Balpa is confident that the pilots will accept it.
A source said: 'There is considerable disquiet among the pilots. There was talk of them wanting increases of up to 20%.'
Airtours is desperate to avoid the problems suffered by Spanish carrier Iberia, where pilots went on strike. A deal was reached after three days of action earlier this month, costing the airline about £3m a day.
Any industrial action by Airtours' pilots during the peak summer period could have a disastrous impact on profits - travel companies make most of their money during July, August and September. Packages offered to pilots are dependent on experience and are made up of salaries, pensions and share options*.
One reason packages offered to Airtours' pilots have been less attractive in recent years is because its share price has slumped from a high of 544 1/2p to 251p on Friday and share options are less attractive. Rivals such as easyJet have offered aggressive deals to attract pilots. Six months ago, easyJet paid a £30,000 'signing-on fee' to captains able to fly Boeing 737-700s. In addition, captains receive packages worth about £90,000 a year.
[ 30 July 2001: Message edited by: what_the_hell_was_that? ]
[ 30 July 2001: Message edited by: what_the_hell_was_that? ]
[ 30 July 2001: Message edited by: what_the_hell_was_that? ]