"Rex expects pilot 'bloodbath' battle"
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our voice!
Well, we can all b%tch and moan about an inactive union and Rex's nerve to put out never ending self-serving BS 
, but wouldn't we help ourselves more if we were to get active withinin our actual realm of influence:
Write a letter to the editor! Copy AFAP on it. If the editors printing Rex's media releases without thinking, keep getting letters intelligently outlining a somewhat different point of view (with reference to the award and a comparison with other skilled occupations), sooner or later someone will print a balanced piece, right?
, but wouldn't we help ourselves more if we were to get active withinin our actual realm of influence:Write a letter to the editor! Copy AFAP on it. If the editors printing Rex's media releases without thinking, keep getting letters intelligently outlining a somewhat different point of view (with reference to the award and a comparison with other skilled occupations), sooner or later someone will print a balanced piece, right?
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Response to your article "Rex expects pilot 'bloodbath' battle" of Feb 11, 2008
Here's the draft of a response to this latest one-sided piece of "journalism" in relation to the pilot shortage (am I cynical to suspect the "article" came straight from Rex's press office?
). I would much appreciate comments and suggestions for improvement before I send it off. Cheers!
Dear Sir,
It is with considerable dismay that I read the above article today. As a business consultant and aspiring pilot, I am disappointed that a national newspaper of excellent reputation would be so one-sided in their reporting, forgoing to present a balanced point of view as it would befit your organisation.
May I ask you to also report that pilots have been for decades some of the lowest paid employees in their peer group of highly trained technical staff. They hold considerable responsibility for the lives and safety of fellow citizens, just like nurses and doctors, yet many entry level pilots still have to attempt to make a living in General Aviation (for most pilots out of training the first step on the career ladder) on below award wages, often earning as little as $25,000 to $35,000 p.a.
In addition to this, the vast majority of trainee pilots have to fund their education themselves. HECS is not available for pilot training, and most banks will not finance it either. To get their first jobs, young Australians have to invest at least $50,000-$70,000, a vast amount for anyone to save up, especially for a young person just out of school – no wonder fewer are choosing aviation as a career path every year! Only a small number of ab initio trainees are accepted into cadet programs (many so-called cadet programs accept only fully trained commercial pilots), and then only at the price of being bonded to the airline/training provider for many years at reduced salaries – which in effect is of course just another form of self-funding training.
While for the last decades, there has been an oversupply of pilots in Australia (with the obvious result of keeping salaries low), recent baby boomer retirements and global industry growth, primarily in China and India, but also here in Australia due to strong domestic demand and especially the buoyant mining industry, is now redressing that balance. Many organisations have already reacted to the shift in demand and supply, e.g. Surveillance Australia is currently negotiating a 20-30% pay rise, primarily in order to retain staff.
It is noteworthy that Rex have so far made no attempts to increase their below industry average pay and conditions, but have gone to extreme lengths to communicate that the reason for their troubles must lie elsewhere. This latest statement about 60%+ attrition rates merely shows that in a situation of increased demand for pilot skills, the companies reacting slowest in addressing the de facto increased price for labour, are losing the same quicker than employers who are more realistically appraising market forces. There have been suggestions that Rex is using this kind of communication to save face before downgrading profit expectations or announcing other bad news, but at this point there does not seem to be independent evidence for this speculation.
I am taking it on good authority from many colleagues in the industry, that there is a large group of well qualified pilots who would be very willing to work in General Aviation and for regional carriers like Rex, but who cannot make a living or raise a family on the wages offered by the likes of Rex, hence many have left the industry. Consequently, I would dispute the notion that there are simply no suitably trained pilots around.
I think the Australian aviation industry will find that a large part of the so-called pilot shortage is due to the lack of attractiveness of the domestic industry at present, and once labour prices have risen to reflect demand, many Australians who have gone abroad to take advantage of better terms and conditions there, will return, as will said dormant pilots, and in the longer term, more young people will choose to become pilots again. One would also hope that the pledge of the Rudd government to revolutionise the Australian aviation industry will translate into actions in the near future, and aid the recovery of a vital and potentially hugely profitable Australian industry.
Another point in this discussion is the elasticity of demand. It is sometimes argued that one main reason for not increasing pilot remuneration, is that the public would not be willing to foot the resulting bill. Global and national figures, however, show clearly that changes in other variables, the best example being fuel surcharges of recent years, are absorbed without curbing air travel. Quite to the contrary, passenger numbers are up across the board and continue to rise even as the price for a barrel of oil approaches three digit figures! Especially with large parts of regional Australia being quite dependent on air travel, it is almost an obvious statement that the price of air travel is very inelastic, and pay rises for flight crews would not spell the end of profitable aviation business (whereas planes on the ground with the high cost associated with idle asset, might just achieve that!).
Please let me add that I have never worked for (or applied for a job with) Rex, and that I have no association whatsoever with any industry body.
I would be most pleased to see this letter published or the arguments contained herein further researched and the results made available in your paper.
If you have any questions regarding the points made, or require clarification, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Best regards,
). I would much appreciate comments and suggestions for improvement before I send it off. Cheers!Dear Sir,
It is with considerable dismay that I read the above article today. As a business consultant and aspiring pilot, I am disappointed that a national newspaper of excellent reputation would be so one-sided in their reporting, forgoing to present a balanced point of view as it would befit your organisation.
May I ask you to also report that pilots have been for decades some of the lowest paid employees in their peer group of highly trained technical staff. They hold considerable responsibility for the lives and safety of fellow citizens, just like nurses and doctors, yet many entry level pilots still have to attempt to make a living in General Aviation (for most pilots out of training the first step on the career ladder) on below award wages, often earning as little as $25,000 to $35,000 p.a.
In addition to this, the vast majority of trainee pilots have to fund their education themselves. HECS is not available for pilot training, and most banks will not finance it either. To get their first jobs, young Australians have to invest at least $50,000-$70,000, a vast amount for anyone to save up, especially for a young person just out of school – no wonder fewer are choosing aviation as a career path every year! Only a small number of ab initio trainees are accepted into cadet programs (many so-called cadet programs accept only fully trained commercial pilots), and then only at the price of being bonded to the airline/training provider for many years at reduced salaries – which in effect is of course just another form of self-funding training.
While for the last decades, there has been an oversupply of pilots in Australia (with the obvious result of keeping salaries low), recent baby boomer retirements and global industry growth, primarily in China and India, but also here in Australia due to strong domestic demand and especially the buoyant mining industry, is now redressing that balance. Many organisations have already reacted to the shift in demand and supply, e.g. Surveillance Australia is currently negotiating a 20-30% pay rise, primarily in order to retain staff.
It is noteworthy that Rex have so far made no attempts to increase their below industry average pay and conditions, but have gone to extreme lengths to communicate that the reason for their troubles must lie elsewhere. This latest statement about 60%+ attrition rates merely shows that in a situation of increased demand for pilot skills, the companies reacting slowest in addressing the de facto increased price for labour, are losing the same quicker than employers who are more realistically appraising market forces. There have been suggestions that Rex is using this kind of communication to save face before downgrading profit expectations or announcing other bad news, but at this point there does not seem to be independent evidence for this speculation.
I am taking it on good authority from many colleagues in the industry, that there is a large group of well qualified pilots who would be very willing to work in General Aviation and for regional carriers like Rex, but who cannot make a living or raise a family on the wages offered by the likes of Rex, hence many have left the industry. Consequently, I would dispute the notion that there are simply no suitably trained pilots around.
I think the Australian aviation industry will find that a large part of the so-called pilot shortage is due to the lack of attractiveness of the domestic industry at present, and once labour prices have risen to reflect demand, many Australians who have gone abroad to take advantage of better terms and conditions there, will return, as will said dormant pilots, and in the longer term, more young people will choose to become pilots again. One would also hope that the pledge of the Rudd government to revolutionise the Australian aviation industry will translate into actions in the near future, and aid the recovery of a vital and potentially hugely profitable Australian industry.
Another point in this discussion is the elasticity of demand. It is sometimes argued that one main reason for not increasing pilot remuneration, is that the public would not be willing to foot the resulting bill. Global and national figures, however, show clearly that changes in other variables, the best example being fuel surcharges of recent years, are absorbed without curbing air travel. Quite to the contrary, passenger numbers are up across the board and continue to rise even as the price for a barrel of oil approaches three digit figures! Especially with large parts of regional Australia being quite dependent on air travel, it is almost an obvious statement that the price of air travel is very inelastic, and pay rises for flight crews would not spell the end of profitable aviation business (whereas planes on the ground with the high cost associated with idle asset, might just achieve that!).
Please let me add that I have never worked for (or applied for a job with) Rex, and that I have no association whatsoever with any industry body.
I would be most pleased to see this letter published or the arguments contained herein further researched and the results made available in your paper.
If you have any questions regarding the points made, or require clarification, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Best regards,
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Pretty good, i like it. too long perhaps, remember they have to read it before it is published. good points though, i think times of change are perhaps upon us.
Aspiring pilot myself, dont mind paying for the rex cadetship(loan, nightshift etc) if it will give me easy flight hours.
Then as soon as something better comes up ill be out of there faster than it took to enlist.
my life plan...
comments?...
Looit
Aspiring pilot myself, dont mind paying for the rex cadetship(loan, nightshift etc) if it will give me easy flight hours.
Then as soon as something better comes up ill be out of there faster than it took to enlist.
my life plan...
comments?...
Looit
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PlankBender & landof4x; Suggest both of you send them as is, to as many newspapers as have printed the Creedy authored article.
Could be interesting!
Could be interesting!
Had the same argument from an employer (flying club) over 20 years ago, aircraft rates could, and did go up with increases in maintenance costs and fuel prices. But it was impossible to give me a pay rise as the resultant 5% increase in flying costs would lead to financial collapse.
Strangely, people accepted price increases resulting from other factors, but supposedly would not accept an increase to pay staff more.
Sad to see after decades and thousands of miles between countries, attitudes like this still persist.
Strangely, people accepted price increases resulting from other factors, but supposedly would not accept an increase to pay staff more.
Sad to see after decades and thousands of miles between countries, attitudes like this still persist.
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First,
Then,
You ask and then get upset when you get a response you don't expect. I see why the press releases get under your skin so easily.
I would much appreciate comments and suggestions for improvement before I send it off. Cheers!
Lodown, how about coming up with something shorter/sweeter/better rather than just b%tching about?!
Last edited by Lodown; 13th Feb 2008 at 14:34.
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In making edits to my last post, somehow the previous post has dropped off. I stand by the comments that your letter is wayyyyyy too long PlankBlender. Editors get 100's, maybe 1000's of emails each day. If you don't have what you want in the first paragraph and keep it short and sweet, then the editor will quickly scan your email, see nothing that stands out, punch "delete" and you'll get a standard response.
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I certainly think there is merit in getting off to these journalists letters that ask them to probe and ask the hard questions.
To put the article that started this thread in context however one could be believed this article started with the journalist in question popping into this company for an update on their situation.
Wrong I believe.
This article was lifted from a Media Release sent by Rex to the media to explain that "Rex announces network changes due to the pilot shortage". A copy of this media release can be seen in the ASX website under company announcements for REX. These announcements are naturally price sensative announcements that can effect share prices so the ASX receives these also.
Naturally media releases are carefully crafted pieces of literature authored by the company to explain news albeit good or bad but usually one will paint even bad news in a the best light possible.
Naturally media releases to the ASX need to be factually correct and it is correct to say "there is a pilot shortage and we do not have enough people to crew our planes", true, but a company would not be obliged to say "we cant attract pilots because (say) we dont pay enough" as this is arguable.
Enter the investigative journalist.
The issue here is really one of journalists receiving these media releases and upon reading them and armed with industry knowledge getting on the phone and saying we want to know if there is more to this story and to use the Pauline Hanson line "please explain".
To put the article that started this thread in context however one could be believed this article started with the journalist in question popping into this company for an update on their situation.
Wrong I believe.
This article was lifted from a Media Release sent by Rex to the media to explain that "Rex announces network changes due to the pilot shortage". A copy of this media release can be seen in the ASX website under company announcements for REX. These announcements are naturally price sensative announcements that can effect share prices so the ASX receives these also.
Naturally media releases are carefully crafted pieces of literature authored by the company to explain news albeit good or bad but usually one will paint even bad news in a the best light possible.
Naturally media releases to the ASX need to be factually correct and it is correct to say "there is a pilot shortage and we do not have enough people to crew our planes", true, but a company would not be obliged to say "we cant attract pilots because (say) we dont pay enough" as this is arguable.
Enter the investigative journalist.
The issue here is really one of journalists receiving these media releases and upon reading them and armed with industry knowledge getting on the phone and saying we want to know if there is more to this story and to use the Pauline Hanson line "please explain".
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Mine's longer than yours
Lodown, I agree the response got lengthy, but then there are a number of arguments to make. If you can come up with a better way to put those or a subset forward, I think we'd all be interested to read it.
Letters to the editor come in manu guises, and are often shortened for publication. If the Australian wants to ignore it, fine, I guess we'll then have to ignore the Australian in turn as a reprint of Rex media releases isn't really news, wouldn't you agree, which reduces the value-add of the newspaper to zero.
In any case, discussing the reply here has already served a purpose, so I'm still happy
Letters to the editor come in manu guises, and are often shortened for publication. If the Australian wants to ignore it, fine, I guess we'll then have to ignore the Australian in turn as a reprint of Rex media releases isn't really news, wouldn't you agree, which reduces the value-add of the newspaper to zero.
In any case, discussing the reply here has already served a purpose, so I'm still happy
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Editors get 100's, maybe 1000's of emails each day
I know of instances where e-mails to Newspapers (and Politicians) simply are deleted without even being opened.
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Write one
Why doesn't someone write an article about the pilots leaving because they are not happy with the T&C's. If you can talk to some of the pilots concerned and get real information for an article and send it to lots of newspapers, and flying magazines that should help.
If you can't get real verifiable information then maybe it's not believable.
If you can't get real verifiable information then maybe it's not believable.
Can pprune set up a "fund" (account?) where members could chip in a few $ in order to get a letter such as the above published ON A FULL PAGE?
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where can i direct my share ?
Alas, something constructive on Pprune.
Let's get cracking. Can someone take charge and start a new dedicated thread....
Fantastic idea.
Let's get cracking. Can someone take charge and start a new dedicated thread....
Fantastic idea.
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Just ring bloody Alan Jones, or Ray Hadley etc.... look them up on the net. there MUST be a phone number... just google them!!!!!
I am SURE that if one rang and explained, then they might be keen to get a "manager" on the fone ASAP!!!!
I am SURE that if one rang and explained, then they might be keen to get a "manager" on the fone ASAP!!!!