CHC UK redundancies/strike action/FSP

[coning angel]

Engineering union are looking at the possibility of being lumped in with the pilots as it appears that their terms and conditions are also about to be eroded.

If people thought the possibility of strike action in Aberdeen was likely, just wait until the pilot workforce of the Southern Bases show their contempt for management soon enough. This will hurt. Watch and see.

[Talk talk]

The way l see it is that James Bothwell has been appointed by First Reserve, the owners of CHC, in order to drive through efficiency savings, specifically from the pilot workforce. Our colleages in the EMS business in the States may be familiar with him, and what little we read about him doesn't bode well. He will want to make his mark in order to justify his appointment and am afraid minor adjustments to working conditions wont, in his eyes, be seen as doing it. My gut feeling is there are tough times ahead, but if the changes he intends to make are not resisted then we could be seeing the gradual clawing back of all the gains made in the past ten years in the helicopter industry. Should he be successful then there is no doubt that these new conditions will rapidly be applied to the pilot workforce in Bristows and Bond. So from the rest of us we wish you guys the very best in resisting these changes

[Impress to inflate]

Well boys and girls, what's the latest on the strike ??

[T4 Risen]

I doubt you will get any info on the strike today as apparently they have all been "invited to a 4th of July independance party by some american friends" !!

I hope they are having a nice time...

T4

[Pullharder]

Ho Hum....well, James Bothwell sorted out EMS in the States...hmmm, well I think he has to realise we are not americans over here, equally, we have very different working conditions,employment (labor)!! laws etc etc...
Personally, trying to change the guys and gals T&C's in Aberdeen is crazy, especially as Bristows and Bond's rosters work very well... Why can't our managment make it work? Equally, our last pay deal was based on a lifestyle roster working 182 days a year,partly brought in due to fatigue, of never feeling you get a break from work, and people deciding it would be a great idea to taxi out in front of landing 737's etc........ not good....(isn't our motto safety first)??
Another point is, the guys down south never got a lifestyle roster, and for years now have worked 196+ days for no extra pay
On top of this, the wonderful management then announced we would be working 200 days per year
I have never been a militant pilot, and the mood at the southern bases has changed dramatically recently, goodwill is out the window, crap roster etc.. Personally,I have had enough of useless management who cannot run the company properly yet blame the pilots for everything thats wrong...I WILL vote for industrial action, and am prepared to use my savings till the last penny if they think for one minute I will work more days than Aberdeen again for the same pay....
P.H.

[Impress to inflate]

OK OK I get the UK thing but has the new manager tried to change T&C's over the puddle in Norway or do they know they will get a good royal kicking from our Norwegian cousins. ??

[TiPwEiGhT]

All is normal with HS I believe, no grumbles from them last week when I spoke to a couple of them, and they are still hiring.

TiP

[Helioil]

And the news is?????????

??? Anyone.......??

[bleepup]

Well it's a cost cutting plan by our American owners to make as much profit as possible by squeezing the life out of the company/staff before its broken up and sold off. Is there anybody actually proud to be a employee of CHC left?

[Hoppit]

...make as much profit as possible by squeezing the life out of the company/staff before its broken up and sold off.

I agree and I know that many others do to. CHC has dug a big hole for itself and is busy throwing itself into it.

Is there anybody actually proud to be a employee of CHC left?

Doubt it. Even the longer standing members of staff that you could consider 'company men' have changed their tune.

CHC won't survive another 12 months

[[email protected]]

So, given that CHC are part of the Soteria bid for SARH (preferred bidder to be announced in a couple of months), how are CHC going to populate another 6 SAR flights using such skilled management techniques?

[Hoppit]

I can just see the advert enticing the MOD guys and gals now:

Fancy working in a challenging environment that leaves you exhausted and under appreciated every day?

Then why not consider a position with the once largest helicopter company in the world in the exciting world of Search and Rescue (daylight) or Oil and Gas?

Benefits include: No direct benefit pension
No share incentive scheme
Medical cover from the NHS
No lifestyle roster
Varying terms and conditions daily

Positions are now available all over the UK*

*Terms and conditions and pay differ all over the place

[coning angel]

Hoppit:
One of the funniest posts i've seen in ages, but unfortunately it's probably going to be used in the next CHC recruitment drive. You forgot one thing.

* Free tub of vaseline for every new recruit. *

[coning angel]

CHC southern bases latest news

Recently, for one reason or another, CHC management have decided that they know best. Just like the person in charge who was heard to say that the Southern bases haven't got the b**ls to take industrial action.
Well, he may just be quite shocked when, on hearing the latest BALPA indicative ballot results for Industrial Action, it would appear he couldn't be more wrong if he tried.

I only just heard this morning but it seems that over 95% of the BALPA members have voted positively for a ballot on industrial action. I really do hope the guys hold out to prove the management wrong and get a positive result.
I wonder if this will affect the BP contract bid out of Humberside?

[Special 25]

Union members have to vote on whether they want an additional ballot on industrial action. Then a 'consultation period', more negotiation, further ballots etc .............

No wonder nothing ever gets bloody agreed !

[pitchlink]

Could not agree more! The management have decided they do not want to talk to us, so why go through all the rigmorole? Lets keep the momentum, inform management of the result if that is what we have to do and go straight for the official ballot for indusrial action. If management then decide thay would like to speak to us, they know where we are.
In the mean time follow the ABZ example; show a unified front, stick together and we WILL prevail!!

[abzheli]

Whats happening at CHC

I heard that CHC have lost another large contract (mersk and maybe another as yet unnamed contract) to Bond as well as the Blackpool contract, some employees saying there is no future in CHC. Would like to hear comments from any CHC employees if any of this is true or not.

[NorthSeaTiger]

Apache ? Denes closing as well ? Doesn't sound good.

NST

[Zaphod1]

Don't know the size of the contracts but I heard Bond are starting work for Maersk & opening a base in Blackpool, as well as opening another base somewhere else (could have been Norwich way).

[roundwego]

Have also heard that Bond are into dirty tricks. Allegedly they have said that anyone at Blackpool who doesn't have a N3 qualification will be made redundant when they are Tupe'd from CHC to Bond when the contract transfers at the end of December. They are trying to scare / poach pilots across before the transfer so they don't have to pick up the CHC Ts & Cs and will end up with a lower wage bill.

Is ABZHELI's post above another one of Bond's dirty tricks to scaremonger in the CHC camp? I suspect ABZHELI could be Bond management.

I hear that some of Bond's existing pilots are getting very uneasy about their own management's grubby tactics.