Americans: Stuff you should know
 

Frequently I meet new joiners who have been surprised by some of the 'details' of the contract.

Its different here - you need to check everything. For example, you should factor in:

(Not so?) 'Little' Stuff

• Airport Car parking
• No 'buddy passes' for commuting
• Expensive staff travel

These alone will take a fair chunk out of your pay packet.

Less Pay
Do not forget that as a new joiner in the USA you will earn 48K less over 10 years than somebody who joined this year.

Time to Command 15+ Years
I would also like to know what they say in interviews about time to command. You should work on a minimum of 15 years. If they tell you 9 years - ask them how many are being promoted to passenger captain next year (60?) and ask how many are ahead of you (1600?). Then do the math yourself.

Change Type
Make sure you ask about your ability to change base and aircraft type.

The Futue
In the big scheme of things, it is the companys unwillingness to keep the package competitive that should be your biggest worry. Of course the A scale have gone backwards - but even the B scale feel badly let down. Do not expect this company to give you fair pay rises.

Still thinking about joining?

Milly

Maybe now you should post all of the things that make a job at a US carrier dodgy.
Merger mania = redundancies and layoffs
Impending recession = redundancies and layoffs
Delays out of control = reduction of domestic capacity....redundancies and layoffs
$100/barrel oil and no fuel surcharge.....see above reduction of capacity.

How long do you think the upgrade times at AA, USAir, Alaska, Northwest and UAL are? Very few of the are growing, while most airplane orders are for replacement a/c.

Mayday

Depends on the base. I think it can range between 50 to 100 bucks. If available at all. You are pretty much left to yourself to find out all that info when you show up at your base. The company will not hold your hand and make it hard for you to not show up for work, like most carriers in the US.

There is no ticket-less travel at Cathay. You need a ticket even to travel on Cathay, so if you want to go from LA to HK, you have to get your ticket in HK, or, they are now letting you order them and they will arrive in your base in a few days. Although, I have not tested this system, so I don't know how well it works (If at all). You get ID90s and oneworld fares on other carriers. Prices vary and are too many for me to write down. Crossing the Pacific on Cathay is not cheap. Round trip business will cost you about 500 USD, and coach will be about 350 to 400. But I haven't done it in a while, so I'm not very sure if it is still that much.

Negative. You just need to compare them side by side to realise that UFO is better for the first 3 years but then goes increasingly lower than the current scale. It also takes you longer to get to HK (4 years instead of 3.5). So if you were planning on coming to Honkers for the cash, you will have to wait longer.

Thanks

Not to mention the blatant prejudice against Americans by many of the Check and Trainers.
If your really thinking of joining try make it to the Sheraton in ANC for happy hour you'll get an earful there.

Mind you, should you get through the course (and most do), you'll have a free 744 rating with no bond........rumour has it that a couple of the larger, better paying and more people friendly US freight carriers are quite appreciative of the training given by CX.

This statement is only accurate if you give Cathay 3 month's notice. Otherwise you will have to pay 3 months salary minus your notice or Cathay will get debt collectors on your ass. So, the training bond is that you must spend 3 months here after training or else you'll pay up to 20,000 USD.

Not to mention the blatant prejudice against Americans by many of the Check and Trainers.
If your really thinking of joining try make it to the Sheraton in ANC for happy hour you'll get an earful there.


You mind sharing!!!!

Thanx!

Well spotted Ed.

I know two people who quit as soon as they had their rating and went to UPS.

box

A Brit also left recently for Virgin after doing over a year, seems they forgot to send him the letter telling him he was off probation.... I don't suppose they'll do that again!

Almost right loop's. The Pom you are talking about actually resigned at his end of probation interview, so he was just within the window.

I've got this one on good authority!

don't close the other doors
 

The window for many cargo/pax airlines application have recently closed, so bookmark their website. You'll be in training for 4-5 months so you don't want to miss the next opportunity. Keep checking - you may later feel the desire to apply. Personally, I applied immediately after training. My experience at Cathay was not pleasant. Be prepared for anti-american comments and attitudes with some of the training captains. Now, the training department is trying to reverse this attitude, but how do you change the dinosaurs' who are still there? The program you are about to embark upon is one of COMPLETE self-study. There is very little contact with instructors to "teach" and if you "ask" you apparently don't know! -and should have!! The standard at Cathay are high, but among the trainers, they don't seem to be consistent - very frustrating. The washout rate for direct entry FOs is very low, but as you progress through the program, your enthusiasm is chipped away. In my previous airlines, we all finished training with eager anticipation of flying the line. At Cathay, when most of my classmates were released to the line, they had all the enthusiasm sucked from their being. It was VERY anti-climatic, not what we expected.
Now if you join a company and don't feel welcome, and there is little support in training - except for your own classmates and friends - it made many of us feeling we made the wrong decision. For some, Cathay fits with what they want, and where they may want to be, BUT, be careful of what you wish for.

For those planning to join, your present employer may be really bad, and this is the change you desire. I won't say don't come to Cathay, but do so with your guard up. This is NOT a western company. Cathay makes money and there is job security, so if that's what you seek, this is the place.

Good luck in your choice, I'll be leaving when a good opportunity presents itself.
:ugh: