Netjets Operations

[Flypiripiri]

Hi

Just going through some threads ref Netjets ops and wonder if anyoneu can help me please?

I am thinking about applying for a job in Netjets OPs and preferably in Dispatch as coming from an ATC/aerodrome Ops background. Am more than happy to move to Lisbon on a long term/forever basis but will still have a mortgage to pay in the UK so am curious about what sort of salary is paid for this sort of job in the company?

Do you know the shift pattern they do?

Is there any form of relocation package?

I am learning Portugese but don't speak it fluently by any means - would this be a problem?

Thank you for your time and any info that you can provide.

[Smeagel]

I would seriously recommend a long hard think before going down this route.

For a start NJE have stopped hiring from outside Portugal. Labour is cheap there and in their shortsightedness the company would rather hire unskilled labour, drop them in a seat in the office and forget to train them. It is all too common to simply fire people for screwing up when in reality they have been given little help. There are one or two managers and supervisors there who have floated to the the top, are hopelessly out of their depth and blame their failings on their subordinates.

Another tactic is for the company to keep staff on probation for a long, long time which then helps in the firing process (it is very difficult to fire a full time employee in Portugal). God knows they need experienced ops people who are good at their job but they simply won't hire them.

Try reading some of the threads in the bizjet forum. The way the company treats their pilots is a good indication of what you could expect.

[merlinxx]

Flypiripiri

Try it, but I strongly advise you, if you can, ask a few questions of NJ crews when they route through your location, or post on the BizAv thread.

Smeagel

When were you last in LIS with NJ, or maybe you know someone there or in Columbus. Either way please be a little more specific in the reasons why not.
They ain't the best, then where are they? Salaries in LIS will be pushed up by those leaving for fields anew. BIZAV salaries in the UK are not what they were, we are behind certain parts of Europe, but on a par with the US. Folks new to the business need to start somewhere, then build, not like "time in place" folks like me, and poss you. At least I can say "been there, done that, got the little nasties, and survived".

Go for what ever is gonna get you on to what you wish to achieve.

[Ops-slave]

Netjets is a okay place.
I don;t know about LIS. But Columbus is okay.
Crazy place. Busy. Most of the ops is handled by jeppesen.

Good luck

[mrbodhi]

Hi Piripiri,
If you have any sense you will read smeagels other previous posts and see that he is on a crusade to bad mouth NetJets in any possible way, He is no longer with NetJets so you probably guess why he does so...
To get back to your questions: I dont know what ops people are paid in the UK but the basic pay for an Dispatch ops coordinator after tax in Portugal is around 1500 euros. Most of the people who work in ops are Portuguese, if not all, but the oficial language is English. However between themselves they will speak Portuguese and so it is a good idea that you can understand it to at least a basic level.
In the past NetJets used to hire alot of expats but recently the intake has manily local. This is due to that the previous upper management thought that expats were of a higher standard than the local Portuguese - this is of course completly incorrect and has since stopped.
I dont how it works now but NetJets did used help expats in terms of cost of moving - could of changed.
NetJets Ops is VERY hetic. But they, in conjuction with all the other elements involved with NetJets, make the company work.
The roster used to be 4 mornings, 2 days off, 4 afternoons, 2 days off and then 4 nights, 2 days off. They recently made a new sort of roster where you do 2 mornings, 2 afternoons, 2 days off, and then 2nights, 2 day shifts - it sounds messy but creates more coverage - and everybody is very flexiable to swap shifts if required.

BTW - I am reffering here to Dispatch Ops and not any other department....

Hope this helps

[Agusta]

If you do go for a job with Netjets I hope you are good at producing paperwork.

[Flypiripiri]

Thank you to all who have taken the time to reply.

[FormerFlake]

This is due to that the previous upper management thought that expats were of a higher standard than the local Portuguese - this is of course completly incorrect and has since stopped


That is not strictly true. Of course someone's nationality does not determin whether they are good at there job or not. However, with only 3 main airports in Potugal there is not a lot of people about with aviation experience. Most, if not all, of the Xpats bring in considerable experience, some with 20+ years in avaition so it wasn't racism. Also, the criteria set for the employment of Xpats is higher than that of the locals from what I have seen. The recent change in mentality seem to be mainly driven by money. The company seems quite happy to hire people who's only aviation experience is Flight Sim and then pay them peanuts.

I can not think of a single person hired in the last 12 months who was not already living in Portugal (some Xpats included who were already here). Owing to the relatively (compared with other countries) low wages and no relocation allowance NetJets is pretty much only hiring locals. They offer jobs to people currently working outside Portugal but no one takes them so dont expect a huge money offer. In fact more and more of the Xpats are leaving so it will pretty much be all locals soon the way it is going.

Because of this we are really suffering because of a lack of proper aviation experience. Do the maths 3 main airports, how many people can there be with the experience levels needed in Portugal? Compare that with the number of people in France, Italy, Germany and UK. The company is mad not to try and attract more experienced people with better wages, no matter what country they are from.

You need a Portguese Dispatch licence to work as a dispatcher here (as far as I know) Usefully, considering the avaiton content, the exam is in Portuguese so not many Xpats take it.