Wages? Pay?

[OnApproach]

Hi All,

I have used the search function to try find an answer for this...
Recently i watched "Capitalism a love story" yes i know its a Michael Moore film and you have to take from it what you can, or want or neither..
However the subject of recently qualified pilots in the US earning less then people working in a supermarket was raised.. and i also read similar comments on various forums/ news blog replies etc around the net..

Is this true for Europe also? is there a massive amount of recently qualified pilots out there that are on crap money and trying to pay off huge pilot training loans??

is it common place that airlines are taking advantage of a pilots passion to be in the air and paying them in magic beans? (so to speak)..

[potkettleblack]

Is this true for Europe also? is there a massive amount of recently qualified pilots out there that are on crap money and trying to pay off huge pilot training loans??

Yep. In its worst incarnation it is called pay to fly or P2F. Believe it or not you can go to a training provider called Eaglejet and buy a type rating on any jet you fancy (right up to 747/A340). They will sell you a type rating and any amount of hours you want to buy. Many fools are soon parted with their money and are then faced with the grim reality that there is very little job prospects for someone with little experience. Its a costly mistake.

is it common place that airlines are taking advantage of a pilots passion to be in the air and paying them in magic beans? (so to speak)..

Yep. All the time. Pilots are our own worst enemy though. We love to give out about our companies in the cockpit but then our colleagues will happily do deals with the company on the side and effectively screw themselves over eg: working on days off to get a weekend off to keep the schedule going.

[INNflight]

is it common place that airlines are taking advantage of a pilots passion to be in the air and paying them in magic beans? (so to speak)..

Bah, it's a TWO edged sword!!!

There are a lot of good & solid employers out there who pay a very decent wage and offer good conditions for their crew, the problem is just that they either are not recruiting at the moment, or people just don't get through their interviews.

At some airlines, you throw money at them, and they give you a go. That's where a lot of people end up and then constantly moan about what they did. Digging their own hole so to speak.

There's still some airlines who are a quality employer, with good unions behind who offer a good package. Of course to get into one of those you have to do psychometric assessments, group interviews, single interviews and actually have more knowledge than how you get a loan for a TR. That's why most don't make it.

Don't be fooled, there's a lot of crap employers around who will exploit your dreams, but work hard and don't listen to everyone and his dog on PPRUNE (mainly because the people who come here often just post about what they didn't get, not what they did) and you'll make it.

It's about dedication and about knowing what you want. There's no point in going in unprepared and then shelling out 30 grand for a type rating for some airline that will treat you like crap anyway. Aim higher.

[OnApproach]

thanks for the replies lads.. good to see not all airlines are acting the fool when it comes to paying a fair and deserving wage!!

cheers