What to negotiate for in a contract

[RefugePilot]

I have been offered a corporate job flying in the right seat of a CJ2. I am coming from freight and taking this job is a 180 degree from the aim I had of flying for the majors. I have already worked out most of the major details like

10-12 solid days off a month

Type rating in 90 days

Insurance medical and eye

Cell phone paid for

What else should I be looking at, or negotiating for?

Thanks

 

[Mason]

I have been offered a corporate job flying in the right seat of a CJ2. I am coming from freight and taking this job is a 180 degree from the aim I had of flying for the majors. I have already worked out most of the major details like

10-12 solid days off a month

Type rating in 90 days

Insurance medical and eye

Cell phone paid for

What else should I be looking at, or negotiating for?

Thanks

If you can get it, you may want to try to get some sort of severance package if the owners wake up one morning and decide to sell the airplane, if this is a one aircraft operation. A friend of mine got his airplane sold out from under him and he had negotiated six months salary. Really helped take the pressure off when he was looking for another job.

 

[pilotyip]

Per-deim or expense coverage on the road. The worldwide pilot shortage must really be spreading, if contract with these items are being offered by one plane corp operators for a SIC in a CJ2.

 

[Lead Sled]

If you can get it, you may want to try to get some sort of severance package if the owners wake up one morning and decide to sell the airplane, if this is a one aircraft operation. A friend of mine got his airplane sold out from under him and he had negotiated six months salary. Really helped take the pressure off when he was looking for another job.

A company can't really discriminate and offer you a severance package if it doesn't offer one to it's other "management" employees. There's not much you can negotiate here - they either offer it or they don't. It sounds to me like you've got everything prety much covered. About the only thing I would question would be how do they handle expenses - do they give you a credit card(s) or do they expect you to use your own and reimburse you? Depending upon the strength of the company, there are real advantages either way.

LS

 

[southernpilot]

Get your lodging, meals, and rent car paid for.
On the credit card. It doesn't matter if the card is issued by the company to you with your name on it or if you use your own card. If the corporation decides not to pay its bills, THE CARD HOLDER is responsible for the charges. Read the fine print. I have never heard of this happening, but it is something to keep in mind when the bill comes due every month.
Also, get your medical, uniform, and CFI renewal paid for by them as well.
Good luck and enjoy!

 

[Lead Sled]

Get your lodging, meals, and rent car paid for.
On the credit card. It doesn't matter if the card is issued by the company to you with your name on it or if you use your own card. If the corporation decides not to pay its bills, THE CARD HOLDER is responsible for the charges. Read the fine print. I have never heard of this happening, but it is something to keep in mind when the bill comes due every month.
Also, get your medical, uniform, and CFI renewal paid for by them as well.
Good luck and enjoy!

It can happen, my brother got stuck for $4000 then the company he worked for went under. I worked for a large corporate flight department for 15 years. We used our own cards and got the "bonus miles" for their use. The company reimbursed all of our expenses within 3 or 4 days. It was a great perk at our company - the airline miles came hot and heavy every month and we got to keep them all. But as southernpilot mentioned, there are some traps. I wouldn't do this unless the company was strong.

LS

 

[RefugePilot]

Per-deim or expense coverage on the road. The worldwide pilot shortage must really be spreading, if contract with these items are being offered by one plane corp operators for a SIC in a CJ2.

Ya, I thought the job was too good to be true myself, but it is managed by a very enlightened guy who is willling to pay and promote the right people. The two employees I have talked to have great things to say about the company.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Most everything you mentioned is covered. All my expenses are paid for the moment I leave my house. We also get a hotel or crew car whenever we want, even if just for a long day waiting. I guess I need to work out whether it is on a company card or I get reimbursed. No uniform required, the previous pilot said "jeans and a clean shirt". I will try to dress a little better than that myself.

There really is no chance of the owner selling the plane as he travels a lot and could afford a Gulfstream if not Gulfstream the company. If the plane is sold it would be for a larger one. The company managing the plane has 4 others so I have options. I have my eye on the left seat of the Falcon 50, but may have to wait a while, the left seat would be nice.

So negotiate medical and CFI renewal, what else to look for.
Thanks

 

[tinman]

1 year contract for the type? Should be, but at least know what they expect. I should be in base this coming week, so I'll hit you up. I just went through this twice in the last 6 months.

 

[alaskaborn]

Coming from my experience, I would want to be clear about what extra duties are involved in the job. Does "keep the airplane clean" mean just that or does it mean that it has to be washed every time it's flown? Who cuts the grass at the hangar? Who scrubs the toilets? Who mops the floors? Are these duties expected to be done on my "hard days off"? Not that I really mind doing these things because I know it's just a part of paying my dues, but in my interview, they made it sound like these duties were going to be shared or at least something easy to keep up with. The reality is that I spend more time doing those extra duties than I do flying the airplane...just something I would have asked for more details about if I could do the interview again.

 

[RefugePilot]

Coming from my experience, I would want to be clear about what extra duties are involved in the job. Does "keep the airplane clean" mean just that or does it mean that it has to be washed every time it's flown?

I know these are important details. So far some of the details of the job I initially discussed in my first interview in April have changed. The plane was going to be based in a town where I own a home and was therefore the only candidate, and asked for a pretty good salary. Now the plane will be based in the city I now live in, since I am no longer the only qualified applicant, I can't expect to make as much. So between my first interview and my second I have already had to relocate, (I had already moved a bunch of things to my home in preparation) and took a pay cut and I have to work more than I would have before, there were going to be 3 pilots for the plane now there are only going to be 2. Also no longer being remotely located from the base means that the 20 days on a month will be busy working in the base or flying. My duties will be things along the line of coordinating crews, hotels, cars for other trips and entering data numbers for trips for lawyers and accountants to see. Given a choice I hope to be flying more.

The original offer was too good to be true. It had all the makings of a dream job, including days spent in a 4 star hotel in Mexico while "working", hopefully this is still part of the package though. All these changes made me almost turn the offer down. But the current offer will pay me almost twice what I make now, and a little more than if I took the upgrade offered me at my current job, which I turned down last week. Overall, my QOL will be a whole lot better.

Thanks for all the advice.