EK - Don't do it!
Been holding my tongue here for too long but feel like I am going to explode. So I wanted to warn young new players away from looking at EK as a career choice.
What I wanted to warn people of is the complete miss alignment between the headline sales pitch that is put to you and the reality of the job in terms of what to expect for coverage of Education, Medical and Accomodation.
There are definitions and exclusion, there are the fine details etc and sure you can be reasonably expected to read and expect them to be complied with.
What is not on the sales brochure is the fact that things can change at a moments notice away from the terms you signed up for under your contract, and there is nothing you can do about it.
In the last 12 months, there have been several signification changes for example.
1. Commands are now limited by age. So if you joined young looking for a command after the generally discussed experience levels. Forget it... they just moved the goal posts and you are screwed.
2. They capped the medical claim per consultation. So a general consultation is capped with complete disregard to the time and expertise involved in the consultation. So for example a 5 minute GP consultation has the same cap as a 60 minute session with specialest. Never mind that one session takes 5 minuets and one takes 60 and is specialised. If they are not applying medical services on top of the procedure, then the service is capped at a rate that covers nothing. Crazy... but means that you can be out of pocket for huge $ if you are unlucky enough to require consultations about the low cap.
3. The ability to opt out of the accomodation scheme now means that if you have any commitment to the region you will also not have the ability to define the living conditions you experience. Not living in company accommodation or at least having the flexibility to chose is no longer an option. This is very significant if you have plans to live outside the hive.
4. Cost of living in DXB. Super hard to anticipate before you arrive, but without putting too finer point on it... EVERYTHING costs WAY more than you could expect. From processing fees for government services, groceries, access to services of any professional nature, not to mention the things that are not covered by Education, Medical, and Allowance that you expected would be covered. EVERYTHING cost more and is going up at amazing rates... super hard to anticipate just how out of pocket you will be.
5. Professionally. Not going to say a lot here, but lets just say that the culture of fear that infests the place is taking a serious toll on all those involved. There is a tremendous amount of potential for this place to be a great place to work. Currently it is far from this...