Do you pay for your uniform?

[o1genesis]

Recently aware of a company that requires it's "casual" employees to buy the company uniform. A uniform that is not just standard blue and white but one that requires the companies logo and web site embroidered on it at the "casual" pilots own expense.

O.K then the company decides to change their uniform and now forces the "casual" employees to buy the new uniform and charges them out of their wages and refuses to allow anyone to work with the old uniform.

[kiki]

I know uniforms are'nt cheap. Fair enuff u need to have one and if your employer dosnt pay for it so eat shi*. But I think the issue here is, that your one day required to have a generic uniform next day a commando suit or your grounded.
Buying 2 sets of different shi**te within say 6months is seriously unfair, Esp when they are like $300 AUD each ( ie $600 in 1/2 a year), and when one is on casual. that sux, tax benefits for the pilot would be not so great.
The employer should be paying for it if they want it changed...

[scrambler]

Not sure how it is supposed to work for casual pilots but under the award I understand that if a uniform is required you are supposed to be supplied with a uniform by your employer.

Having said that it is amazing the amount of companies that say "we pay the award, and you are required to supply your own uniform"

[Dr. Rudi]

The Award States:

30.7 Uniform


30.7.1 Where an employer requires a uniform to be worn on duty, the employer will pay an allowance of $250, payable upon employment and annually.


30.7.2 Where the employer does not provide a uniform an allowance of $4.70 per week will be paid towards the cost of excessive wear and tear to the pilot's own clothing.


30.7.3 This clause will not apply where the employer provides clothing.

People who are working for below award wages and or conditions, have only themselves to blame. Outside the safety net of the award, the employer can do what he likes.

[Woodend1]

that's a great tune kiki:p

[early2]

Nac required that I must where a uniform with a logo that matched the paint jobs on the planes (those mad red stripy schemes). Subsequently I refused and just kept putting off spending that $40 per shirt for embroidery.

Sw hounded me for ages (I only owned one white shirt complete with C400 wing locker horizontal oil stains).

Eventually he gave in and gave me one of his shirts, and someonelse's name badge, because I had a important corporate flight to do. Spent the whole day being called the wrong name too.

That shirt served me well!

I don’t mind buying my own shirts - don’t get me wrong, but getting them embodied is all wrong. All changed when I moved across the border, in the west employers seem to supply every thing as per the award.

My last employer had just spent $250 on shirts for me and I was fortunate enough to move onto another company. So it can get very costly for the employer. If they stipulate you must where a embrodied shirt, well they should pay, because a plain shirt with a name badge is just fine - makes it eaiser to walk around public also.


early

[gatfield]

If you have a uniform that has logos on it, it means that you can legally then claim it as a tax deduction.If you don't have a logo you can't claim it. Having a logo should be good thing , right?

I have done many casual jobs in my life and many of them I had to purchase particular clothing. Alot of people do this and in lots of small buisnesses - it is the norm! I even had to do this for a government job for awhile.

Why is that people in aviation are constanly looking for things to whinge about?

If you have to pay for a pilots uniform be happy that you have a job!

If you are casual and have to work an extra job and so you can live - be happy that you have two jobs!

[Next Generation]

gatfield
Finally, somebody else who can see the wood through the trees.

You have hit the nail on the head.

I have never known so many whingers than there are in aviation.

Perhaps it brings out the worst in people.

Good post!

NG

[o1genesis]

Ng and garfield............ R.T.F.P. (where the P is sustitued for Q)

This post was not about whingeing.

Due to my inability to type my mind the same way as I might speak my mind and the editing by Woomera (which by the way is not in dispute. Woomera this is your forum and I respect any editing that you see fit) you may have intepreted my post incorrectly.

I was simply try to state that it is not fair for a company to designate one company specific unform to employees one week and then change it on short notice. Thus requiring the employees to fork out the bucks for the new uniform. And not letting them work unless they have the new uniform quicktime. These guy's are mostly casual and that type of expense is half or more of their income. Why? Because they have a change of marketing strategy?

Why not let the guy's that have complied with the existing uniform have a little grace and then make sure new recruits use the new uniform. You know, a transition period? My point was that it was unfair to the guy's that paid for the original uniform.

So is that whingeing NG, Garfield?

Thats all

the Gen

[DVDA]

Ah leave the poor lad alone. It's pretty standard to pay for your own white shirt blue pants everywhere when you're first starting out. However if you've gotta put logos on them thats a bit rough cobber. I know it sucks but just do it and look at the big picture. whats a few bucks when you're coining it in 5 years.
Peace out my nizzels

[Capt EFIS]

In my opinion, if the company wants you to have a specific logo on your shirt or jacket then it's up to the company to supply it for you.

You don't mind paying for the standard pilot's shirt as you can take it to the next job easy enough.

However, the award does state that if the company requires a uniform to be worn on duty then an amount of $250 will be paid to the pilot on commencment of employment (and annually thereafter), I am sure that this would go a long way towards paying for those logo specific shirts that are required.

This applies if your casual, part-time or full-time.

Cheers,

Capt EFIS.

[Gotmygearup]

Perhaps SW is making sure he gets the uniform change, and $ in before the 24/3 in case AFAP get approval through the tribunal for the Award to be made common rule in the NT.

But would have thought the uniforms the least of his worries if it goes through, compared with the extra $10/hr he'll have to pay his pilots :{ or the minimum 2 hrs pay, based on duty times rather than MR.

Fingers crossed for a level playing field for Darwin companies...

At least give your pilots some grace, and wait and see of you get through the heat for your latest crash before they have to pay for new uniforms. (:eek: shame on me )

[George.Handel]

Hey money shouldn't matter. You have the privilage of flying for him because more experienced pilots won't put up with his s... I'm mean no one else will give 250Hr CPL's their first job.

Fly NAC - Where experience counts

GMGU... latest crash? How come no threads on pprune yet... safety of pax/crew... details?

[early2]

hey gotmygearup,

I wasn’t bashing HA, I agreed to his conditions of employment when I worked there, I was just trying to get away with not spending any cash on embroidery for logos.

If he has to pay an extra $10 an hour I am sure he will cover it with little difficulty.
Quite a few companies have come and gone in the time HA has been operating in DN, and he is still operating.

Hey George.Handel
Nac is not that bad, there where experienced and professional pilots working for HA when I was there. From what you just said it sounds like 250hr pilots are driving the 421 and chieftains around.
Don’t work for him if you don’t like his conditions, simple. Jealous you are, or as yoda says:

"Don't give in to hate. That leads to the darkside"

[Gotmygearup]

I must apologise early2, and HA, I was most unfair.

What could have made my think someone who will not back up new start pilots (with less than a years life out of there blue and whites) by offering a subsidy on there complete refit, would have a problem with paying them an extra say 5 or 6+ thousand dollars each per annum. At 650 hours a year, for say 20 employees, that’s an extra $130,000 per year... or 110,000 litres of AVGAS!

That doesn't factor the minimum 2 hours pay for calling a pilot in, or paying a pilot based on real duty time not MR. Nor does include super, holiday pay, sick pay blah blah blah, should he offer pilots salaries.

So your probably right, when I'm currently on $30k pa, I probably am jealous of those on $17-22k who have to pay for not one but TWO uniforms in their first year of employment.

Empathy early2, not jealousy.

GH... On the weekend a Cheiftain driver forgot to put wheels down at remote airstrip with full pax. No one hurt that I have heard of.

[George.Handel]

That makes 2 prangs for NAC this year, and its not even half March. Plus the 3 I can think of off the top of my head last year (one near killed the pilot) and 2 in the few months of 02 I was up here. How come AN, AF and the rest of us cop so much heat yet this company seems to be invisible to the authorities.

On the other thing, an extra 130G's pa probably would start to level the field.

[early2]

gotmygeargearup, G.Handel,

you win,

Can't argue with that.
30K is good going compared to what NAC offers, however they gave me work when no one else would and the drivers that where there were professional, competent and great to work with.
I take it there has been a great deal of movement since, onto much higher paying jobs.

I wasn't aware of the subsequent incidents this year and in 03.
Yeah and i still think that if an employer want's a logo on your shirts they should pay, it ruins a good shirt.