The upgrade is always available for the revenue passenger to purchase. If they want it, buy it.
I don't walk into McDonald's and demand a quarter pounder with cheese (or Royal with cheese if you're in France!) for the price of a regular cheeseburger because I'm a frequent customer. Nor do I even notice much less care if there's an employee eating a free quarter pounder on their lunch break.
I had a cousin who would get INFURIATED by employees in first class "over" him. I always thought it was sort of funny, I mean, I guess I am just too lazy to care about most things, like who is sitting where for example. Anyway, he was a sales executive with a major consumer electronics manufacturer and subscribed to the belief he deserved the seat in first, regardless of his ticketed fare class, especially over some employee.
So he would go on these tirades about seeing people, who he was sure were employees of given airline, sitting in first class sipping champagne while he was forced to take a seat in steerage. There was no convincing him it was myth first class was as he put it "union class" or "employee class"....He would go on these tirades while in his car, decked out with the latest top of the line stereo equipment from his employer, major consumer electronics manufacturer, or in his home, filled with the latest televisions and speakers and all manor of high end consumer electronics from same major consumer electronics manufacturer. The irony was rich. I finally just started lying to him, baiting him, telling stories of riding positive space all over the system for free, bumping mileage upgrades, like it was my private fleet, just living like a king. He would get mad, I would reply "hey, you work hard for major consumer electronics manufacturer, and enjoy the benefits, my dad worked hard for his position and subsequent benefits; if I want a new camcorder, I'll buy it, or start a career at major consumer electronics manufacturer, if you want to ride in first class, buy the ticket, or get a job with an airline.....
