3 ms·

Plane pilots are unionized, at least in UK or US. Your average major airline pilot makes around $130/hour. Do you consider them a common laborer, like a delive

• jasode 9y ago
  >average major airline pilot makes around $130/hour. No. The captains with a 10+ years seniority flying international routes might make that. The average is closer to $59/hour[1]. The average is lower than people think because many budget airliners pay only $20k for 1st year pilots. The waves of downsizing also cut salaries. That's for USA pilots. I don't know about UK. Many programmers with barely a few years experience can get salaries beyond $59/hour without union representation which is partly why unionization is not an urgent need in the profession. [1] http://work.chron.com/average-commercial-airline-pilots-salary-11855.html http://work.chron.com/average-commercial-airline-pilots-sala...
• closeparen 9y ago
  And as a result, piloting is a deeply unattractive career path because all new pilots must start in, and many will never make it past, the regional airlines with much lower pay and worse working conditions. As in other fields, the pilots' union creates a two-tiered system where the haves (major airline pilots) enjoy great wages and conditions off the backs of the have-nots (regional airline pilots) who are miserable. While unions are meant to extract value from capitalists and management, they often seem to end up extracting it from prospective and early-career workers who haven't yet made it to union membership.