Pay Cuts

[18speed]

It is really very simple, the good employees will always have work and not get a pay cut, they will probably get a annual increase. The weak employees will get the old pink slip or a pay cut in hope that they will leave. This market slow down is really just a correction in the industry that happens every cycle. If some one tells you that they will not have to pay as much to fly or fix their helicopter they really don't think much of you in the first place, at that point you have to look at yourself and ask am I really doing a good job?

[KnuckleDragger]

So I guess when that company gave all employees a 9% paycut they should take the hint and leave? Who would do the work?

[N1]

Everyone in this industry can take it or leave it; just like they did last year and all the years before.

 

If an employer is not paying the market rate, then the employees leave for other jobs where they can make more money. It really makes no difference if the rate is up or down, because ultimately the choice lies in the hands of the recipient.

 

Now you have to apply the factors of a rising economy: increasing number of new operators; expansion of existing operators and the bubble caused by the natural resources boom. Like all good booms, it is followed by a good bust - and that is where we are headed today, and there is nothing new in this, just many younger people who have never experienced this before and in many cases believed that the good times would never end. Talk to anyone that is over the age of 40 and I can guarantee they have been through at least one cycle.

 

The market dictates rates for helicopters (or anything else) and that market rate trickles down into what can be paid for any labour. Add such volatile, non-negotiable costs, such as insurance, financing and fuel and that labour rate may suffer a severe correction.

 

Any employee or group of employees that believe they can buck these changes by refusing to work for a company, quitting or not accepting a position in some undesirable location may be faced with the reality of being out of work with no real prospect of changing that outlook.

 

The downside of the boom is companies downsizing, running tight budgets and/or going broke. 2008 saw quite a number already. All Operators/Managers run a continual mental list of who they would keep and who they would let go. If it gets to the bottom of the easy end of that list, then the really good ones will be in the job market and how do you hope to keep up with them if you are developing a reputation as a non top-performer.

 

The reality is here already. Times are tight and until the season starts, it will be really difficult to see where it is headed. Some companies are in a good place, some are in a corner. With the number of employees that are out there as contractors, it should be recognized that in a year or two, everyone may be a contractor - with no other option. As jobs get tighter, then then so do the pay rates, and the fact you may not be prepared to work for the going rate, may offer you only one, not very attractive alternative!

 

But be sure of one thing. The number of operators, jobs, helicopters and people in this business is about to change dramatically. And for this year, as it currently stands anyway, it is all going to be down.

[helicopterjim]

Unless you are on straight salary I can see that most of us will get a cut in pay simply by flying less hours if the economic trend continues the way it is going. We can all hope for a good fire season but most of the work out there is tied to the economy. With oil prices low and mining slowed down it looks grim.

 

Hopefully six onthes from now we have forgotten all about this. That is the joy of taking the good with the bad.

[Stab Bar]

It is really very simple, the good employees will always have work and not get a pay cut, they will probably get a annual increase. The weak employees will get the old pink slip or a pay cut in hope that they will leave. This market slow down is really just a correction in the industry that happens every cycle. If some one tells you that they will not have to pay as much to fly or fix their helicopter they really don't think much of you in the first place, at that point you have to look at yourself and ask am I really doing a good job?

So I guess everyone at that company is weak, apparently there were NO exceptions in the cuts. Pilots, Engineers,Managers everybody

[N1]

So I guess everyone at that company is weak, apparently there were NO exceptions in the cuts. Pilots, Engineers,Managers everybody

 

Maybe this is the best method of all - requires everyone to be in it for the long-haul?

 

One of the great dangers for a business in this environment is that the good ones leave by their own choice and you are left with a bunch of employees that no-one else wants to hire either! That is a most certain recipe for destroying a company.

 

The companies that are going to exist through this cycle will take action that falls into one of the following three categories;

• Contracts unaffected by current market conditions with guaranteed revenues and business volumes
• Immediate lay-offs and cost-cutting to position themselves for survival
• Matching expenditures to projected revenues and opportunities

 

Companies do not lay-off loyal, productive employees just for the sake of it. If immediate action is not taken, many companies do not have the resources to survive a down turn even if only in the 90-120 day term, especially if it backs onto the seasonal winter expenses (and a bad season leading into that) that so many operators in our sector have to endure. Contrary to what so many employees seem to believe, a company is not a bank with unlimited resources.

 

On the other side of this equation, there are also a number of healthy and robust operators who will be eyeing expansion and acquisition in this climate, as it reduces the competition and fuels the growth neccessary for survival and the next phase in the recovery cycle - beat the competition.

 

A lot of companies are going to disappear in 2009. Some will be small local operators who have been created to meet specific local opportunity: some will be well known names that have been through it all before: some more will shock the industry as they are players that have survived the past fluctuations and are well managed and financed businesses. In the latter category, I think that we will see the disappearance of a number of operators who have become so specialized that they are unable to weather a change in the marketplace, as they have lost the diversity that is key to survival when the bottom falls out of your world.

 

But there is always a light at the end of the tunnel...

 

 

 

[happyfeet]

Maybe this is the best method of all - requires everyone to be in it for the long-haul?

 

One of the great dangers for a business in this environment is that the good ones leave by their own choice and you are left with a bunch of employees that no-one else wants to hire either! That is a most certain recipe for destroying a company.

 

The companies that are going to exist through this cycle will take action that falls into one of the following three categories;

• Contracts unaffected by current market conditions with guaranteed revenues and business volumes
• Immediate lay-offs and cost-cutting to position themselves for survival
• Matching expenditures to projected revenues and opportunities

 

Companies do not lay-off loyal, productive employees just for the sake of it. If immediate action is not taken, many companies do not have the resources to survive a down turn even if only in the 90-120 day term, especially if it backs onto the seasonal winter expenses (and a bad season leading into that) that so many operators in our sector have to endure. Contrary to what so many employees seem to believe, a company is not a bank with unlimited resources.

 

On the other side of this equation, there are also a number of healthy and robust operators who will be eyeing expansion and acquisition in this climate, as it reduces the competition and fuels the growth neccessary for survival and the next phase in the recovery cycle - beat the competition.

 

A lot of companies are going to disappear in 2009. Some will be small local operators who have been created to meet specific local opportunity: some will be well known names that have been through it all before: some more will shock the industry as they are players that have survived the past fluctuations and are well managed and financed businesses. In the latter category, I think that we will see the disappearance of a number of operators who have become so specialized that they are unable to weather a change in the marketplace, as they have lost the diversity that is key to survival when the bottom falls out of your world.

 

But there is always a light at the end of the tunnel...

 

 

 

All true!

 

The market is in a tail spin but when will it pull up??

[Rotorboy2]

If a paycut is required, then it should be applied to ALL employees, including the owner(s). Everyone has a vested interest and no single group within the organization should bear the brunt of it while others continue to receive 100% of their wages.

 

If a company is committed enough to do that, then I would (grudgingly) look at that proposal. IF not, then the company really just says to me "we don't think you're worth the money, but others are" and I'll ride it out and bail the first opportunity I get.

 

But personally, I think this thread should be deleted... it gives me the willies.

[Elvis]

Rotorboy there is always this approach

 

 

[AH1]

This thread reminds me of someone yelling fire in a packed theatre.