Virgin Pay Deal

[wheelbarrow]

Hi all,

I wonder if someone could help me please. I am an FO with a large UK charter outfit, about 3000 hours with both Boeing and now Airbus ratings.

I have applied to Virgin Atlantic.

I wondered, is there any sort of flexi working? i.e. more pay for more work , or more time off for less money etc? Essentially, in the end I hope to live near Girona in Spain.... so, I am wondering how realistic this aim may be?

Additionally, people keep talking about the "pay deal" that concludes this year. What is it roughly, and what does it mean for starting salaries and salaries after that?

I know that VS is THE place to go ! They told me that on the phone when I spoke to them...!!

Any info greatly appreciated. And thanks in advance guys.

[Rainboe]

Ampuriabrava huh? Nice place. Should work out no problem commuting with Virgin!

[Another FNG]

Contract is for 760 hours, for which you'll get basic salary plus £13.30 (ish) per block hour (from Jul 05) plus allowances. You can volunteer to work to 850 hours if you wish. As a volunteer you'll get ~£60 per credit hour for every credit hour you work over 81.5 per month. If you work over 760 you get basic/750 per hour plus a ramped up equivalent of the £60 per hour. Unlikely to get a contract for <760 hours in the current climate-especially on the 340

[wheelbarrow]

Rainboe,

Very nearly! I do hope you can cook, however it must be better than Curry and Chips ! I hope you enjoy the service on Croatian Airlines !

Another FNG,

Very succinct detailing, I appreciate it. Thanks.

[scroggs]

The Virgin pay deal was negotiated a couple of years ago, and involved both an increase in basic pay and the introduction of an element of productivity pay and profit-related pay. These combine to produce the £13 (or so) per block hour that FNG refers to. (This figure is for FOs). The net result was an increase of around 25% in real terms over the three years of the pay deal for all VS pilots. Prior to the deal, Virgin was arguably the western world's worst-paid long haul airline (though there were other lifestyle advantages which mostly remain). That is no longer the case! The deal was negotiated by our excellent BALPA CC, with the strong backing of a 90+% BALPA membership.

The options of part-time working are being worked on by the company and the CC, and I believe there will be some limited opportunity for the B744 fleet to bid for this next year. It may be some time before a similar opportunity arises for A340 crew. The fact that increased working hours are available gives a clue to the fact that we are to some extent undercrewed, and why therefore reduced-hours contracts are not yet in place. That said, there are many, many VS pilots who commute from overseas at present.