Peanut Pusher - without realising it, your post has become rather inflammatory towards Link Chicks (although I don't for a moment believe that it was the intention)...
In response to your post:
"long haul don't want a thing to do with regional affairs"
That's right - Long Haul don't want to look after anyone else other than Long Haul. $10 bets you, however, that if Regional could provide them with more Short Haul slots they'd get involved (MY OATH they would!)
"many see it as a back door for people who didn't cut it first time around."
Couldn't this also be applied to the many crew that go from Long Haul to Short Haul and vice versa? Like QF Skywalker has said, Link Chicks go through just as much a selection process as mainline crew - I fail to see where the 'obvious differences' lie! Many Short Haul Crew that go to Long Haul eventually end up in Long Haul because they couldn't 'cut it' the last time they applied externally to Long Haul - that, or Short Haul is where they ended up, because they took ANYTHING they could get to be employed by Qantas.
As far as Long Haul crew go, a large majority are champing at the bit to get into Short Haul (many of whom have NEVER applied externally to Short Haul, in competition with other better qualified applicants).
In all cases as far as Mainline crew are concerned, they could ALL RESIGN and apply externally and get in that way too - but they don't. Why? Because they all refuse to lose their years of service, seniority, etc. AND THEY SEE IT AS AN ENTITLEMENT! WHY THEN ARE LINK CREW VIEWED AS BEING INTERLOPERS WANTING SOMETHING THEY DON'T REALLY DESERVE, WHEN MAINLINE CREW CONSIDER IT A GOD GIVEN RIGHT??
"Next time they come back with better skills and work background and make main line standard. "
I can appreciate your comment only to a CERTAIN degree. Whilst Link Crew do enter with years of flying behind them, etc. THAT IS ALL THEY DEVELOP. And I'm sure you agree, as with the thousands of FA's already in mainline who were employed off the street, you don't need flying experience to become 'mainline' - it's nice, but certainly not essential.
Mainline standard????? CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THAT IS? Exactly what is mainline standard Peanut Pusher? Passing EP's? Wearing the uniform correctly every day? Smiling? OOPS - Link Crew do that everyday (not so sure about mainline though...)
I agree with Skywalker - there is no difference. If anything, the only difference is that these crew WORK HARDER FOR FAR LESS MONEY because they LOVE THE JOB (How many Dash Chicks agree with me on this one?)
PP - If I had been flying for 25+ years (and through some magical mystery, QF hadn't made me redundant or on a contract in some way, shape or form) and some new, fresh and eager FA wanted my job, then so be it. That is the case now - many new, fresh eager FA's want older crew positions - but know they'll have to wait until their time comes before that happens. Just as Link Crew - they keep missing out on CP because hundreds of Long Haulers want to jump ship into Short Haul ahead of them.
I agree with you that it is important - though certainly not ESSENTIAL - for a range of experience to be on a flight. However, regardless of experience, all crew are trained to the same standard and many bring a wealth of experience from other backgrounds. At the end of the day, this should be all that matters.
OZCabin Crew,
The Divisional Transfers would be actioned first, before the Shortlist.
If they were to use the short list for contractors and casuals, they could still employ without doing Career Progression from the regionals. The Short Haul Crew and Long Haul crew would transfer between one another irrespective, depending on vacancies.