SERCO AUH / ALN - what happened ??
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SERCO AUH / ALN - what happened ??
Who stole the thread about the Serco contract in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain ???
Did somebody offend somebody and get it removed or did it just evaporate?
Did somebody offend somebody and get it removed or did it just evaporate?
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Nope ! Its gone. I posted to it a couple of days ago but now there is no sign of it. The search doesn't bring it up and if I search for my own posts it says I haven't posted since 21st June which is definitely not correct....very strange. Me smells a conspiracy 
...or maybe it's just too much sun!
OUCH !!! Who hit me ??
...or maybe it's just too much sun!
OUCH !!! Who hit me ??
Last edited by Sheikh_Yaboody; 2nd Sep 2004 at 13:54.
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Substantial Rises
Hey, good news travels fast!
Anyone care to speculate on what Seth considers "substantial"?
Since this is probably (maybe?) going to generate some interest in Serco employment from distant places, how about we list the pros and cons of Serco ME employment so that those who are interested will at least have somewhere to look for information.
Hopefully this will not become a Serco Bashing exercise, just an accurate and informative database, all sensible contributions welcome.
Heres a start, please add to it from your point of view.
Pros
Tax free salary!
No tax!
Accommodation supplied (varies between a villa and a flat in a high rise, depending on location)
No utilities to pay ( telephone/internet excepted)
Good lifestyle (varies with actual location)
Safe environment in which to bring up kids
Cheap food
No tax!
Cheap electronics
Don't work too hard (again, probably depends on where u actually go)
2 months vacation per year
Airfares
Reasonable pension/super scheme
Very few traffic police (should that go in cons
)
Cons
General hassles of living in the ME (bull**** and bureaucracy)
HOT summers
"ordinary" management (location specific?)
Crazy Drivers
Expensive beer, poor selection
Lousy salary (to be rectified????????)
"ordinary" medical cover (and getting worse each year)
Anyone care to speculate on what Seth considers "substantial"?
Since this is probably (maybe?) going to generate some interest in Serco employment from distant places, how about we list the pros and cons of Serco ME employment so that those who are interested will at least have somewhere to look for information.
Hopefully this will not become a Serco Bashing exercise, just an accurate and informative database, all sensible contributions welcome.
Heres a start, please add to it from your point of view.
Pros
Tax free salary!
No tax!
Accommodation supplied (varies between a villa and a flat in a high rise, depending on location)
No utilities to pay ( telephone/internet excepted)
Good lifestyle (varies with actual location)
Safe environment in which to bring up kids
Cheap food
No tax!
Cheap electronics
Don't work too hard (again, probably depends on where u actually go)
2 months vacation per year
Airfares
Reasonable pension/super scheme
Very few traffic police (should that go in cons
)Cons
General hassles of living in the ME (bull**** and bureaucracy)
HOT summers
"ordinary" management (location specific?)
Crazy Drivers
Expensive beer, poor selection
Lousy salary (to be rectified????????)
"ordinary" medical cover (and getting worse each year)
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____Robert's your fathers brother !!____
OK, so the pension/super is not so hot. I will remove that from the list. It does however allow you the opportunity to leave the Gulf with some money saved. I get the max deducted so I can't spend all my salary on beer 
Do SercoME ATCOs not get their airfares back to base once per year????
Pros
Cons
Do SercoME ATCOs not get their airfares back to base once per year????
Pros
Cons
Last edited by Sheikh_Yaboody; 3rd Sep 2004 at 06:41.
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Maybe bob is referring to the fact that with the substantial increases lately in the fares and taxes, you will find yourself out of pocket when you go to purchase said tickets. Apparently the 'allowence' doesn't necessarily have to actually reflect reality
As for the 'substantial increase'- I expect it to arrive in the same manner as the 'accommodation allowence'
Serco bashing? At least it might help morale.
As for the 'substantial increase'- I expect it to arrive in the same manner as the 'accommodation allowence'
Serco bashing? At least it might help morale.
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Do SercoME ATCOs not get their airfares back to base once per year????
). BUT beside that airfares are pricy in the UAE I think.
Serco Bashing exercise
Fill me in please, exchance rates are still down by 33%, Doha is planning a package of 20-23K Dirhams per month plus villa and schooling etc., which will be much more than Dubai. Hallo, Major Tom is calling....
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Hey NIKNAK, I know you were saying it as a joke, but I don't find beer out here expensive at all. Disregarding the fact you are buying the beer with tax free money, rather than in the UK or elsewhere, you are paying with money that you have already paid tax on, beer is reasonably priced I think. You go to a grog shop here, and pay 100 dirhams for a carton, of European, American, British, Irish, Australian, Indian, Mexican etc etc beer. In Oz dollars that is between 35 and 40 dollars which for an imported case of beer is cheaper than what I would pay in Oz. And as far as range goes, while yes not having the local specialty beers you may get in Pubs in the UK, it has all the big brands, with most pubs having around a dozen different beers and ciders on tap, and grog shops having probably 30 different beers to choose from. Not bad I'd say, and with the weather out here, lots of beer drinking weather to be had ie. no need to warm the beer up here.
Hey Bob, any further on that amount you mentioned???? Is it a reliable source? 30K would certainly soften the blow of the 30% paycut I have taken the last couple of years due to the exchange rate. I don't think it will keep people here much longer than they would have previously stayed, and probably won't make much of a difference as far as recruitment goes, but will make things a little more comfortable while I continue to work here, so better than a poke in the eye with a blunt stick, I say.
That said, I am worried it will turn into another accomodation allowance desert mirage.
One point I will be seeking to clarify is the comment in the letter that this allowance will incorporate our normal 2005 pay rise. If this allowance is just that and doesn't effect our gratuity/SORAS, does that mean that due to in effect our salary not increasing for 2005, we will be worse off than we would have been gratuity/SORAS wise????? That would be really low, if it was the case.
Hey Bob, any further on that amount you mentioned???? Is it a reliable source? 30K would certainly soften the blow of the 30% paycut I have taken the last couple of years due to the exchange rate. I don't think it will keep people here much longer than they would have previously stayed, and probably won't make much of a difference as far as recruitment goes, but will make things a little more comfortable while I continue to work here, so better than a poke in the eye with a blunt stick, I say.
That said, I am worried it will turn into another accomodation allowance desert mirage.
One point I will be seeking to clarify is the comment in the letter that this allowance will incorporate our normal 2005 pay rise. If this allowance is just that and doesn't effect our gratuity/SORAS, does that mean that due to in effect our salary not increasing for 2005, we will be worse off than we would have been gratuity/SORAS wise????? That would be really low, if it was the case.
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...Bob
Well Bob, it seems you have very good sources somewhere. It would appear that you knew what was being offered even before we did.....or perhaps some of us are just kept in the dark.
Judging by the amount of postings here the result of the offer is totally underwhelming.
The extra money will surely be welcomed by those already here but the housing arrangements don't seem to offer much, and will it really be enough to entice anybody from far off places?? I don't think so.
Is the average utility bill in Abu Dhabi really only dhs6000 per year? I would of thought the a/c bill alone would be that much!
Is anybody considering moving away from Serco accommodation based on what is being offered?
Judging by the amount of postings here the result of the offer is totally underwhelming.
The extra money will surely be welcomed by those already here but the housing arrangements don't seem to offer much, and will it really be enough to entice anybody from far off places?? I don't think so.
Is the average utility bill in Abu Dhabi really only dhs6000 per year? I would of thought the a/c bill alone would be that much!
Is anybody considering moving away from Serco accommodation based on what is being offered?
Last edited by African Queen; 8th Sep 2004 at 06:47.
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AirNoServicesAustralia
One point I will be seeking to clarify is the comment in the letter that this allowance will incorporate our normal 2005 pay rise. If this allowance is just that and doesn\'t effect our gratuity/SORAS, does that mean that due to in effect our salary not increasing for 2005, we will be worse off than we would have been gratuity/SORAS wise????? That would be really low, if it was the case.
If that is the case why don\'t they just say so? Why try to make a warthog look like a prize pig?
Who comes up with these plans???????
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Well Bob, it seems you have very good sources somewhere. It would appear that you knew what was being offered even before we did.....or perhaps some of us are just kept in the dark.
Apparently non-operatonal ATCOs are getting an increase of 20.000 Dhs p.a. FOR WHAT???
1) Most of them moved from AUH to better villas in DXB. AND the possibility to buy the property = paid by Serco = free investment!
2) They keep "forgetting" to accommodate their ATCOs in BETTER flats/villas. 75K/55K in DXB and 60K/45K in AUH is NOT enough!
3) We want better housing, the money increase is just some kind of excuse to cover some of the exchange rate losses during the last couple of years.
4) Do they really think that this allowance will get ATCOs from around the world to queue up? Don't think so...
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The allowance is better than nothing, BUT, why 1. Does it take a week longer than Dubai for UAE ACC to find out what theirs is., and 2. Why include 2005 increase in the allowance. Also why does Dubai get such a high accomodation allowance (I heard that has increased above 75k, is that right), and AUH gets such a low joke of an allowance.
Not gonna keep anyone longer than before and not going to entice anyone to come who wasn't already coming. Just means those guys getting 20k extra for having the privelage of living in villas and working office hours, can turn around to GCAA etc, and say well look we tried to get controllers, so it's not our fault.
Not gonna keep anyone longer than before and not going to entice anyone to come who wasn't already coming. Just means those guys getting 20k extra for having the privelage of living in villas and working office hours, can turn around to GCAA etc, and say well look we tried to get controllers, so it's not our fault.
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Congratulations to all the controllers on your new allowance.....Nice when a group of a few can hold the company to ransom until such point as they cave in!!
However, spare a thought for the people that supply and maintain the tools that you require to actually do your job. The people who amazingly got "overlooked" by the clandestine management that is SERCO.
Consider how these guys feel the next time your SSR loses targets, or your GMR is not functioning correctly......You really think that you are going to get the same level of co-operation from your Engineers and Met guys now??....... I don't think so.
Best of luck with the revolution though.
Yours sincerely,
Justin N Gineer
However, spare a thought for the people that supply and maintain the tools that you require to actually do your job. The people who amazingly got "overlooked" by the clandestine management that is SERCO.
Consider how these guys feel the next time your SSR loses targets, or your GMR is not functioning correctly......You really think that you are going to get the same level of co-operation from your Engineers and Met guys now??....... I don't think so.
Best of luck with the revolution though.
Yours sincerely,
Justin N Gineer
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TRY AGAIN !!!
UR all Idjuts I Quit
DUBAI DOESN'T GET A HIGH ALLOWANCE !!!
YOU JUST GOT A LOT LESS
Also why does Dubai get such a high accomodation allowance (I heard that has increased above 75k, is that right), and AUH gets such a low joke of an allowance.
YOU JUST GOT A LOT LESS
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Sour Grapes
Congratulations to all the controllers on your new allowance.....Nice when a group of a few can hold the company to ransom until such point as they cave in!!
If anybody was held to ransom surely it was the currently employed SERCO controllers who have seen their real world salaries cut almost in half by declining exchange rates and conditions and salary increases in other countries and who were not really in any position to negotiate with SERCO given the scarcity of employers in the contract ATC world and SERCO's virtual monopoly in that area.
C550 jockey - nice attitude!! Sounds from your nik that you are just another frustrated pilot who would rather be flying than f#$%%^ up ATC equipment.
ps Not all ATC's need radar you know!
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Re: Sour Grapes
African Queen...... Yep, you're absolutely right. I'd much rather be flying than working for this shower of c**** !!
Not to worry though.....days to do are getting fewer.
Not to worry though.....days to do are getting fewer.