Would you work at Encore?

[AutoPilot Off]

I`ve heard rumors about guys doing a westjet interview at mainline and being asked if they would work for encore? These are guys I assume that applied for a mainline position and were then doing a interview for a mainline position. I was turned off hearing this. Is this going to be the Norm now, asking if you would work for lower wages and conditions for who knows how long to one day get a job that your basically interviewing for??

[Mr. North]

I can confirm. My friend (capt @ porter) was interviewed for the mainline in the fall and they asked him if he'd be happy to fly for Encore first. He smiled ear to ear and said he'd love to even though He was rather angry they tried to pull a bait and switch. Thankfully he was accepted into mainline. I doubt he would have left for Encore considering he was already making close to double their starting pay.

[7thirtyseven]

I can confirm. My friend (capt @ porter) was interviewed for the mainline in the fall and they asked him if he'd be happy to fly for Encore first. He smiled ear to ear and said he'd love to even though He was rather angry they tried to pull a bait and switch. Thankfully he was accepted into mainline. I doubt he would have left for Encore considering he was already making close to double their starting pay.

So your buddy got interviewed for mainline, got the job and is now presumably trundling around the skies in a 37.... Im curious how you define "bait and switch"?

[Mr. North]

I mean it in the way he applied to fly at the mainline, was called for an interview at the mainline, and then was asked "what do you think about working for Encore?". Yes, in the end it worked out for him but as he left the interview he honestly didn't know if he would be hired by mainline or Encore. What if he told them he didn't want to work for Encore? Would he have been hired at all?

[tallyho]

NO

[7thirtyseven]

I mean it in the way he applied to fly at the mainline, was called for an interview at the mainline, and then was asked "what do you think about working for Encore?". Yes, in the end it worked out for him but as he left the interview he honestly didn't know if he would be hired by mainline or Encore. What if he told them he didn't want to work for Encore? Would he have been hired at all?

What if the company he was applying for thought "hey, here is a potentially great candidate for some positions we really need filling" (think training guys on q400s, experience etc etc) If you worked at Westjet you'd want the interviewers to be alert enough to ask pertinant relevant questions to scope out individual attributes each candidate may bring. One of the difficulties with Encore is the forging of a new relationship mainline vs feeder. As pilots we have templates in our mind that are very real throughout the industry. Non of these are could really be called successful from a pilots point of view. I believe the Westjet-Encore relationship will be much closer than this template, not saying it will be perfect, just saying for eg the WJPA and management is under alot of pressure to form an airline that is an integral part of Westjet itself, heres hoping in a year or two it wont really matter that much from an overall career perspective whether you get hired at WJA or Encore.

[frog]

I must be dumb, but for me it is a mistery : you apply for a FO position on 37, you are invited to an interview for a 37 position, and the interviewer ask you if you want to work for another position with a lower salary...

[7thirtyseven]

Have you ever done an interview? You might get asked anything. Given the importance Encore will be to Westjet in the near future Id say its a fair question.

[frog]

Yes I have done quite a few.

I think it is unfair if answering no to the question jeopardizes the chance to have a job offer.

Usually when you attend to an interview in aviation there is a cost associate to it and a lot of time to travel back and forth. So if you spent a lot of time and dollars for an interview, I think the least that the company could do is to discuss the job you applied and you where offered an interview for.

[Lateralus]

I interviewed a year ago and was asked this. But I know and they tell you in the interview that you are interviewing for WJ not encore. Like 737 it is a huge part of WJs future and is fair game. If they ask you be honest and tell them what YOU really want. The interviewers know why you are there and what you are interviewing for. People tend to forget as much as your are being interviewed you are also there to ask questions and see if the company is a good fit for you as well. With anything honesty is the best policy.

[7thirtyseven]

Yes I have done quite a few.

I think it is unfair if answering no to the question jeopardizes the chance to have a job offer.

Usually when you attend to an interview in aviation there is a cost associate to it and a lot of time to travel back and forth. So if you spent a lot of time and dollars for an interview, I think the least that the company could do is to discuss the job you applied and you where offered an interview for.

Fair enough, but if you are asked an Encore q. At a Westjet interview its not a bait an switch its an oportunity for the candidate to demonstrate his/her knowledge of current happenings at Westjet. The interviewers have droped one in your lap to do with as you will....

[frog]

I agree that questions on the company are legitimate. One should have a good idea of what is going on at a company one applies.

My point is regarding the question : would you like to work for Encore ?
As long as a "no" doesn't cost you the job on the 37...

[AutoPilot Off]

Just got a PM from the best source possible on this site. My original question is infact a rumor and a bad one. If you were to apply for both positions they might ask you which one you prefer, which is fair ball I think. Carry on..

[frog]

Too bad, I was just warming up !

[7thirtyseven]

Too bad, I was just warming up !

Awesome... You sound like me.

[Eric Janson]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I've done my share of interviews over the years - sometimes by choice sometimes by necessity.

These have ranged from a 20 minute informal discussion to 3 days of Psychological tests/Group exercises/Simulator grading.

Sometimes the interviewers will "throw you a curve" just to see how you handle the unexpected. Or they may be having a bit of fun with you - seen both.

Agree that honesty is the best way to go rather than trying to second guess what they want to hear.

Also agree that an interview is a 2 way street (you are also interviewing them ). A lot of people don't understand this.

I have failed interviews and turned down job offers. No regrets - wouldn't change a thing if I had to do it all over again.

Don't take it too seriously.

[Old fella]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I've done my share of interviews over the years - sometimes by choice sometimes by necessity.

These have ranged from a 20 minute informal discussion to 3 days of Psychological tests/Group exercises/Simulator grading.

Sometimes the interviewers will "throw you a curve" just to see how you handle the unexpected. Or they may be having a bit of fun with you - seen both.

Agree that honesty is the best way to go rather than trying to second guess what they want to hear.

Also agree that an interview is a 2 way street (you are also interviewing them ). A lot of people don't understand this.

I have failed interviews and turned down job offers. No regrets - wouldn't change a thing if I had to do it all over again.

Don't take it too seriously.

Valuable commentary above. Like the poster I did some interviews - lost a few and won a couple and turned down two job offers in my entire working life. You will see and hear it all, believe me and as the song says...... " sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and in the end it's only with yourself"

[Mig29]

As Old Fella said: don't take things too serious guys.

Having said that, to answer the question: NO.

I mean, guys who apply to WJ mainline are already making a significant pay cut and lifestyle change in order to work there (for first few years at least), so why would you ask me to take even deeper cuts by potentially accepting Encore's embarrassing contract?

Which I have seen personally...

[twinpratts]

Don't feed the troll

Dave P told me himself that it's a separate application, separate interview, and you'd have to apply twice in order to be eligible for positions at both companies.

Somebody is enjoying all you guys getting sucked into the rumors surrounding this thread.

Keep calm and carry on

[xTally]

Don't feed the troll

Dave P told me himself that it's a separate application, separate interview, and you'd have to apply twice in order to be eligible for positions at both companies.

Somebody is enjoying all you guys getting sucked into the rumors surrounding this thread.

Keep calm and carry on

Sadly, I know of one confirmed case of someone (a friend of mine) applying only to WestJet mainline, doing a walkthrough and then being railroaded into an Encore interview. So unfortunately it does happen but hopefully not too often.

[cj555]

Sadly, I know of one confirmed case of someone (a friend of mine) applying only to WestJet mainline, doing a walkthrough and then being railroaded into an Encore interview. So unfortunately it does happen but hopefully not too often.

Just take a step back and think about what WJ needs right now. A company that is in the midst of taking a huge risk and launching a new low cost carrier; obviously they need alot more people at Encore right now to launch the WJ Encore operation then at the mainline operation right now. They want and need good people to launch WJ Encore, and they likely receive most of their applications for the mainline. So put yourself in their shoes, it makes perfect sense that during a mainline interview they would bring up Encore to gauge your interest in Encore should you not be hired at the mainline (for whatever reason). I would also imagine that a few years down the road once both camps are fully staffed, this kind of "cross interviewing" will not occur nearly as often if at all.

[WJ200]

.....and then being railroaded into an Encore interview.

That's one of the funniest statements I've read....railroaded.....oh the humanity. Nothing worse than being forced to take an interview...at a regional....to fly a new Q400....with GUARANTEED Flowthrough to WJ. What's wrong with this industry....

[whodareswins]

They want and need good people to launch WJ Encore, and they likely receive most of their applications for the mainline.

Maybe they should offer a more competitive salary instead of dangling a carrot if they want "good" people to apply at Encore and not mainline?

[whodareswins]

...with GUARANTEED Flowthrough to WJ.

Since when is it guaranteed? 1 in 4 is not a guarantee.

Just like the salary; you're only guaranteed 70 hours. Sure you might fly more than that but there is no guarantee. I wouldn't base my life around anything else other than what is guaranteed to be deposited in my bank account. Right now that's $32K for FOs and $57K for Captains. Those figures are quite a bit lower than what is guaranteed at every other Q400 operator in Canada, including Sky Regional.

[WJ200]

You are looking at the 1 in 4 backwards. For every four pilots hired at WJ, one will always be from Encore. Not right away (the airline needs some breathing room to grow) but the commitment is within two years this will be the formula. No interview. No COG test. No sim. You simply go across....

As far as the 70 hours. If you are consistently only getting 70 hours I would be looking elsewhere for work because the airline wouldn't be sustainable as a low cost regional airline. One thing is that it ten years the airline has consistently under promised and over delivered.....in my experience.