10 pilots told to pay $1.17m to leave airline (China)

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“Dongola”
10 pilots told to pay $1.17m to leave airline
By Cao Li (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-09-13 11:51

The courts have ordered 10 pilots of China Eastern Airlines to compensate their employer a total of nearly 8 million yuan ($1.17 million) for leaving their jobs, local media has reported.

The Wuhan Intermediate People's Court ruled on Thursday that each of the pilots was to compensate the airline's branch in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, 700,000 to 1 million yuan, depending on their service term and the training programs they received, the Changjiang Times reported.

Zhang Hua, who was ordered to pay 700,000 yuan to the airline, told the paper that the ruling was of no surprise to him.

Still, he said he did not regret leaving China Eastern.

"I don't want to live under constant high pressure," he was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

"I want to work for a company that is humane and that has a relaxed atmosphere."

In May last year, 13 pilots of the Wuhan branch of China Eastern handed in their resignations and were asked to pay a total compensation of more than 100 million yuan. The employer claimed that the money was to compensate it for the investments it made to train the pilots.

In August, the provincial labor arbitration committee ordered the 13 pilots to pay more than 9 million yuan to compensate the airline for their departure.

Daunted by the large amount, three of the pilots reportedly withdrew their resignations. The remaining 10 pilots brought their case to the Qiaokou District People's Court.

The court later announced that the 10 pilots should compensate their employer a total of nearly 10 million yuan. The airline lodged an appeal to the Wuhan Intermediate People's Court, which made the final ruling this Thursday.

Zhang Qihuai, a legal expert with the China University of Political Science and Law, said he had told the pilots in a legal consultation that the compensation being ordered by the courts was reasonable, since the amount was about what the company had paid for training the pilots.

"Most State-owned carriers in China sign tenure contracts with pilots to prevent them from leaving the company," Zhang said.

Company officials in Wuhan and Shanghai declined to comment on the ruling on Friday.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2008-09/13/content_7025113.htm

Using their conversion rate, that works out to about $102,000 to $146,000 per person.
 
Using their conversion rate, that works out to about $102,000 to $146,000 per person.
the pilots sign a 99 year contract. they know what they are getting into. the training stateside for just FAA Commercial AMEL is probably 60-80K (including housing, etc) plus they transfer to the Chinese version, and get typed.

i would say it is fair. would i sign the contract? hell no!
 
"I want to work for a company that is humane and that has a relaxed atmosphere."

Try looking for a job outside of CHINA!!
 
They sign a 99 year contract?!

Good golly! Signing yourself up for indentured servitude? No thanks!

I can understand training contracts of a year, 2 years....... not *99* years!
 
Does that mean you cant get furloughed or fired or laid off for 99 years too?
not sure on that, but they can still retire at 60 or 65. i think if they lose their medical they still have to work for the company.
 
They sign a 99 year contract?!

Good golly! Signing yourself up for indentured servitude? No thanks!

I can understand training contracts of a year, 2 years....... not *99* years!

But, c'mon Amber. They get to fly a sweet 738 with only 250 hrs. I'd sign that contract ina heart beat.

What's 99 yrs. I mean, really?
 
Wait. What happens if you die? I mean, most people don't live to be 99, and even if you take the job at 18....well, that's 17 years right there. Does China have a mandatory retirement age? If you die before the contract's up, will they come after your family for the $$$? The fact that a 99 year contract EXISTS is laughable. The fact that people actually SIGNED it is ludicrous.
 
Wait. What happens if you die? I mean, most people don't live to be 99, and even if you take the job at 18....well, that's 17 years right there. Does China have a mandatory retirement age? If you die before the contract's up, will they come after your family for the $$$? The fact that a 99 year contract EXISTS is laughable. The fact that people actually SIGNED it is ludicrous.
i would guess a "death" is a way out of the contract. I only know what former students of mine have told me. some of the others around asia have them sign a 20yr contract.
 
i would guess a "death" is a way out of the contract. I only know what former students of mine have told me. some of the others around asia have them sign a 20yr contract.

Geez. I'd be hesitant signing a 5 year deal on a company I didn't know a LOT about. If you don't like it, 5 years is a long time to suffer. I can put up with a lot for a year, but anything past that, I've gotta know it's gonna be a good deal.
 
Holy hell, I didn't know about those contracts, either. I guess they had it coming to them...and yeah, while it DOES suck for them, I think it's only fair. A lot of these students end up w/ A LOT of flight hours, FAA side, for their ratings. 75ish hours seems to be the norm for the PPL, around here, and much more for their remaining certificates/ratings. It's a lot of money considering some of them do wash out from the program.
 
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