Ryanair do not allow their contractor pilots to fly for anyone else during their unpaid month off and all of their hours will have been used up anyway.
A certain Australian domestic contract has a very low (in relative Australian terms) minimum payment.
Pilots are only paid flight time and cancelled flights cost the company nothing but the individual everything.
The company however maintains
contractually that any other hours belong to them, despite not paying for them until THEY want to, other than 100 hours of 'private flying' they own the rest, so they think.
A myopic union hierarchy allowed the company to claim that pilots only 'fly' on average 15 hours per week (O'Leary says the same of Ryan air pilots) whilst ignoring the duty hours. Time away from base effectively means pilots are away from base,
at work for about 60 hours per week and where the company hasn't pre-allocated flying to them somehow pilots are 'obligated' to perform any additional flying at the company bequest. The end result is the mis-characterisation that went unchallenged is that the IR court said pilots had to be available..
It was something that a few inquisitive minds wondered; they don't pay for the hours therefore to whom do they belong?
After all the regulator issues the licence and endorsement to the pilot: the company pay for it. If they don't pay for the hours pilots ought not have to provide them unless it suits the pilot..
This change if effectively migrated will undo any contractual perception. Can't have it both ways!