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I'd be more interested in seeing how many customers would be willing to fly with them!

 

Let's face it - our industry has totally failed to create a level of safety that users of our services have a right to respect. Ergo, the prime users have imposed their own safety standards with which we have to comply in order to work for them. Hate SMS or love it - it's a tool serious and professional operators are using to gain stronger footholds in the marketplace. Those that won't play will continue to be relegated to the crappier and crappiest.

 

'Associations' or unions will only serve to creatte cushy jobs for a few and a boring workplace for which I don't think any of us joined the industry. If you did, please go drive or fix buses.

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It would be in the interests of all Canadians and to the benefit of Canadian workers and families to end this dependence on foreign workers in this very small skilled profession by visiting the existing Canadian Action plan and job training incentives to assist operators to hire and train young Canadians. and once and for all put the jobs back into the hands of Canadians. I look forward to working with you and your colleagues to find a solution to put an end to an over dependence on foreign workers.

 

 

Or something like that........

 

 

Jones is an air head! Playing it up for the owners club and not representing the Canadian crews or the best interest of all industry stake holders and demonstrate some foresight and find a long term solution ..."LONG TERM" Total Lack of leadership...but then agin for the most part he is put in place as a puppet of the owners club so I really don't expect anything more...

 

Same old same old....!. Blaaaaaa

 

Several valid points in all previous posts. All point to the same systemic problem...

 

IMHO

 

P5

 

Ahem... Correct me if I'm wrong but an ad was placed on an American site back in 2004 advertising for pilots for the newco "Gulf Island Helicopters". The ad was placed by P5 (using his real name) and one of the stated requirements went something like this "Due to the complete lack of professionalism to be found in the Canadian industry we are only accepting candidates with college degrees"... Remember Mr. 5? Ha ha ah that was quite a brouhahah at the time.... But everyone is allowed to change their mind and it appears you have switched 180 degrees and are now fighting the foreign devils on behalf of the Canadian pilots you (now) think so highly of!

 

I think we are lumping several issues into one bag here. We, for instance, have 2 pilots out of over 100 (and we have quite a few 100-hr pilots and many ranging from 100 to 18,000 as well) who are on a permit to work based on a "Labour Market Opinion". I have nothing against foreign pilots and, in fact, have worked in quite a few other countries myself. That being said it is difficult, not easy to get a foreign pilot in to Canada and get them working. The only reason to go through that difficulty is pressing need. In our case we listed specific criteria and could find no one in Canada (at least none whom applied) that fit the bill, mostly based on the type of aircraft. I think that's a legitimate reason to employ a foreigner as the alternative in some cases is to recuse your company from bidding on projects or, in extreme cases, of fully manning your aircraft.

 

The flip side of this is the "need" being of your own creation. That is if you can "only" find pilots from outside the country for Day VFR utility work there is an issue. Some operators are good at "spinning" things to show they can't find qualified people but, once again, please don't tar all with the same brush. There is a definite issue with the hourly requirements for some clients aggravating this situation. When a pilot gets 1500 hrs and are fighting fire and moving drill they DO NOT want to go fly lease to lease in the gas patch. Therefore we get the guys who have that amount of time mustering cattle or whatever seeing those jobs as a good entry to the Canadian market. If they weren't allowed to take those positions would the market adjust for that and create more opportunity for lower time Canadians? Personally I doubt it but I think the market is down-turning and the pilot shortage is being eased... or so it seems anyway.

 

On the matter of an association I was thinking (I think I mentioned this before) why doesn't a small group approach HAC about starting a Pilot and Engineer Committee? Publish some terms of reference that once accepted by the board become the constitution for further development and start getting things lined up? The HAC Board doesn't edit or try to dictate anything to the various committees so it's not like it would be stifled by the "owner's club" (assuming HAC would accept the idea of a committee and I think they would). Eventually, when the participation was up there and things were rolling it could be spun off into HEPAC 20XX as a standalone... maybe I'm still recovering from the May Long but it seems to me this could be a low-overhead approach to getting an association started...

 

HV

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Guest JetboxJockey

I'm curious to see how many 500/600h pilot are working at the moment .. or recently hired .. Anybody ?

 

Not I and it's not from a lack of trying.

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'Associations' or unions will only serve to creatte cushy jobs for a few and a boring workplace for which I don't think any of us joined the industry. If you did, please go drive or fix buses.

 

And here we have the typical reaction everyone who's ever tried getting an association off the ground has gotten. Association does NOT equal union. The whole situation with FTD regs is a perfect example that has essentially put the operators in a situation where they have to fight for a common sense solution because of the fact that there is no independant voice for pilots.

 

An association would essentially be there to lobby Transport, and possibly even HAC on behalf of pilots. The Canadian industry is far too fragmented to even dream of creating an entity that would aspire to negociating salary or working conditions accross the board, and personally, I wouldn't have anything to do with such a thing.

 

HV, your idea of creating a subcommittee within HAC might work, but the cohabitation would have to be brief, because no one would lend it much credibility (not pilots, and not other external entities such as TC and CARAC imho) due to the proximity with HAC.

 

In any organization, you always have to look at where the money is coming from to see who's interests will be best served. I've often heard the argument that chief pilots and ops managers are pilots too, even if they're in management. But in the end, and unfortunately, the owners of most companies operating helicopters are not experienced commercial helicopter pilots themselves, but rather business people who look at financials first and foremost, and they have the final word on how they do things. I have no problem with that, mind you, business is business, but somebody has to speak on behalf of pilots without having the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads...

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  • 4 years later...

I found this season the old pilots have moved on or retired and for the majority of young pilots they need to get some work ethics.

we put a lot of  training into our pilots young or old and expect to get 3 years out of them.  When you apply for work with a company who is in the north then expect to live in the north.

 

The myth of hiring foreign pilots for less money is just that a myth. We have to pay a fair wage determined by immigration services and they do not recognize  free accommodations or flight pay.

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On ‎2017‎-‎06‎-‎28 at 3:26 PM, P0wdepig said:

I found this season the old pilots have moved on or retired and for the majority of young pilots they need to get some work ethics.

we put a lot of  training into our pilots young or old and expect to get 3 years out of them.  When you apply for work with a company who is in the north then expect to live in the north.

 

The myth of hiring foreign pilots for less money is just that a myth. We have to pay a fair wage determined by immigration services and they do not recognize  free accommodations or flight pay.

This is beyond laughable. I'll take a hit of whatever youre smoking and then just maybe I'll be understand your out of touch reality. You must offer one truly amazing state for the art training program? Considering you expect a three year commitment in return. What is a fair wage and how many hours a day are you working these people that have been so graced as to have the fortune of being under your employ. 42 on and 5 off?

You might want to rethink your business plan without relying on the TFW program. If you have a business in the North, you should fully expect to have to employ people from the South. I don't know ANY experienced pilots that would move to the North on a permeant basis without some very serious coin. IE legally binding contract etc.

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On 6/28/2017 at 4:26 PM, P0wdepig said:

I found this season the old pilots have moved on or retired and for the majority of young pilots they need to get some work ethics.

we put a lot of  training into our pilots young or old and expect to get 3 years out of them.  When you apply for work with a company who is in the north then expect to live in the north.

 

The myth of hiring foreign pilots for less money is just that a myth. We have to pay a fair wage determined by immigration services and they do not recognize  free accommodations or flight pay.

So you admit you hire TFW's? Maybe you can't get 3 years out of Canadian pilots because you are not paying a fair wage and only TFW's that come here to gain experience think what you're paying them is acceptable.  You are part of the problem.  Stop hiring foreigners and pay a fair wage.. The Canadians will follow and stay!

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  • 4 weeks later...

I just loved this comment on PPRuNe on the HNZ contract in Oz... :)

Quote

I personally work with many foreign pilots, almost all of whom are now Australian pilots. Some still live in Australia's most Eastern state - New Zealand. (Almost spiritual Aussies, and covered by the two way "Trans Tasman agreement".

Again, in the current employment environment, bringing pilots in on any kind of visa is a total BS move, and reflects dreadfully on any company low class enough to do it. (And reflects dreadfully on any government incompetent enough to allow it.)

 

So there you have it guys and gals! 

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