91100 100 set
to the book
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2003
- Posts
- 694
This post might generate some heat, but I have been thinking about it for a day or so and want to say something. I was recently attending an interview for a regional airline. Currently employed by a 121 carrier whose future is a huge question mark, and I am looking for a new income from a "respected carrier with a decent contract" (log #1 on the fire). There are some carriers that I am not interested in working for regardless of growth, speed of upgrade, etc (log #2), and based on how I feel right now I will not apply to such carriers. So, there I was sitting in the terminal with a coworker who also interviewed that same day, waiting to fly home. A young woman who also interviewed that day with us walked over and sat down, also waiting for her flight. The 3 of us were making small talk, and my coworker and I were discussing the relative pay cut we'd be facing should we be offered positions, the relatively pathetic training pay, and a few other financial challenges we'd be facing the first year, and the large raise we'd be seeing in year two. Him and I were discussing in general terms our own financial obligations and how first year pay would be a challenge to these obligations. Then she said something that kinda made me bristle. "I don't really care about the pay, so long as it's an airline". I was once a little like her. I wanted to tell her that once the crease is worn out of your new airline uniform pants and you are on your second batch of uniform shirts, the thrill isn't the same and it's more about quality of life and not just taking ANY job. I'm afraid that it is exactly her attitude that is why we have people flying around making 25 or less a year, sleeping on crew room couches because they cannot afford better. I realize that I might be hypocritical for feeling this way, since we were interviewing for the same job, but her lack of concern for general working conditions in this industry really bothers me. As long as people with that attitude are out there, it's not gonna get any better.