ASA/Vietnam/Mekong combined thread
04-28-2010, 06:15 PM
#111
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: Self employed
Posts: 3,048
That money will probably not be tax free, unless you are a LEGAL resident of that country (with that country's "green card" in your pocket).
OR
You could stay out of the US of A for 330 days of the year (see IRS form 2555). Very unlikely on a 13 month contract, unless it starts on Jan 1, and you only go home once for 30 days.
Yes, there will not be any withholdings for the US government, but that is not tax free. You'll have to pay taxes on your income... if you want to stay a US citizen.
I'm not sure how much time I want to waste about the pay. It's substandard. It looks like no accommodations provided. What about transport? What about taxes in Vietnam?????? Security?????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????????
For perspective: I know a CRJ-200 captain who makes $10,000/month salary (not an hourly thing), room, food, transport, round trip home every 6 weeks, all local taxes, medical in country, all local license fees, validations, medicals, etc paid, blah, blah... all provided.
At my company in west Africa, same basic package, except CRJ-900, every 8 week rotation home for 4 weeks, $8000 to $8500/month.
OR
You could stay out of the US of A for 330 days of the year (see IRS form 2555). Very unlikely on a 13 month contract, unless it starts on Jan 1, and you only go home once for 30 days.
Yes, there will not be any withholdings for the US government, but that is not tax free. You'll have to pay taxes on your income... if you want to stay a US citizen.
I'm not sure how much time I want to waste about the pay. It's substandard. It looks like no accommodations provided. What about transport? What about taxes in Vietnam?????? Security?????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????????
For perspective: I know a CRJ-200 captain who makes $10,000/month salary (not an hourly thing), room, food, transport, round trip home every 6 weeks, all local taxes, medical in country, all local license fees, validations, medicals, etc paid, blah, blah... all provided.
At my company in west Africa, same basic package, except CRJ-900, every 8 week rotation home for 4 weeks, $8000 to $8500/month.
Last edited by TonyWilliams; 04-28-2010 at 06:36 PM.
04-28-2010, 06:17 PM
#112
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: Self employed
Posts: 3,048
AND THERE IS THE PROBLEM, AS ALWAYS.
LET ME THANK EACH OF YOU IN ADVANCE FOR EXPORTING THE US REGIONAL MODEL TO THE WORLD.
04-28-2010, 06:31 PM
#113
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: awkward & cramped
Posts: 340
While I am disappointed with the pay, I did a bit of quick math to work out what kind of pay one would need in the United States in order to get $4,250 in pocket every month. Remember, that $4,250 is tax free and all of it goes directly to the pilot.
Adjusting for 25% Federal Income Tax, 6% state tax, Medicare tax, SS tax, housing allowance offered by Mekong, and travel allowance offered by Mekong: a first officer would need to make roughly $80,000 per year to have $4,250 in pocket after rent and utilities are paid for. This, of course, assumes a pilot living in ATL is paying about $700 for rent and $100 for utilities, or some combination bringing total rent and utility expenses to $800 monthly. I pay less than $500 per month total in rent and utilities split with a roommate at a nice place in Buckhead.
Its fuzzy mental math, but it gives you an idea. Again, I am not contending that said pay is appropriate for an expat, but its not bad for an RJ FO.
Adjusting for 25% Federal Income Tax, 6% state tax, Medicare tax, SS tax, housing allowance offered by Mekong, and travel allowance offered by Mekong: a first officer would need to make roughly $80,000 per year to have $4,250 in pocket after rent and utilities are paid for. This, of course, assumes a pilot living in ATL is paying about $700 for rent and $100 for utilities, or some combination bringing total rent and utility expenses to $800 monthly. I pay less than $500 per month total in rent and utilities split with a roommate at a nice place in Buckhead.
Its fuzzy mental math, but it gives you an idea. Again, I am not contending that said pay is appropriate for an expat, but its not bad for an RJ FO.
When my contract ended and some other lowlife came in an lowered the bar, I walked away. I refused to take part in ruining something good.
Working overseas isn't a cakewalk. The work rules are nothing like the US and there are reasons why the pay has been "premium". A special congatulations to ASA manaagement for taking a huge step towards destroying the last bastion of well compensated pilot jobs.
This contract is not better than being furloughed. Remember, in a foreign country, you have a lot more at risk. One incident could land you in a filthy, rotting "he love you long time" jail and ALPA isn't there to bail you out. Is the CRAP pay worth the risk? There are a lot of risk factors to consider that I won't get in to, but anything less than double your current US salary is NOT WORTH IT...for you, or the profession.
Maybe they can get some guys to go over and fly for free in exchange for the way cool experience. Like foreign exhange pilots. That would be so rad, bro.
Totally disgusting. The aviation profession just died a little more today.
04-28-2010, 06:44 PM
#116
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: Self employed
Posts: 3,048
Ok, so $7650 total per month. And nothing else. Wow. How many days off (I'll bet 2 weeks)? What rotation schedule?
I did a quick check on a round trip ticket home to ATL from SGN, $1487 every quarter, if you can get always get a seat on the cheapest ticket. Most expensive was over $6000. I wonder what happens when the company changes your days off at the last minute, and you need to change that ticket? Ya, sure that'll be cheap. Oh, don't worry, I'm sure they WON'T reimburse you. Very smart of them to know that you'll be paying any differences out of your pocket.
04-28-2010, 07:01 PM
#117
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2008
Posts: 888
No idea what expat should pay in this case, we can hope that nobody will take this deal if it is a low ball offer, however they only need 25 FO's and 25 CA's... might find you have a hard time finding ASA captains at that rate with the assumption that they are more settled (and thus less likely to want to go to vietnam anyway) but also ASA captains that isn't going to be a huge raise. An FO at the bottom that could double his pay. We can hope the bar won't be lowered but I'm not going to hold my breath.....
04-28-2010, 07:06 PM
#118
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Nov 2005
Position: MD80
Posts: 1,111
04-28-2010, 07:19 PM
#119
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: Self employed
Posts: 3,048
Witnesses recall memories about Great Spring Victory in 1975
The Vietnam Military History Institute and the Ho Chi Minh Museum co-organised a talk on the “Great Spring Victory 1975” on April 21 with ten people who witnessed the event.
They are those who used to work for the US-backed Saigon regime, and Buddhist monks, nuns and priests, who ran secret activities to contribute to fully-liberating Saigon.
Trieu Quoc Manh, an ex-judge for the Saigon regime, who was invited to act as Police Chief of Saigon and Gia Dinh province, recalled his release of political prisoners captured during the regime.
The chief nun of the Ngoc Phuong monastery said that religious dignitaries had enthusiastically mobilized Buddhist followers to take part in various movements, including those to claim peace and release political prisoners.
Huynh Van Cang, a former member of the HCM City Party Committee and Director of the municipal Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Department, said he and other officials had persuaded a large number of draft dodgers and military officers serving the Saigon regime to fight for the liberation of the south.
The Great Spring Victory on April 30, 1975 is a shining symbol of revolutionary heroism of Vietnam and is one of the most outstanding events of the 20th century.
The Vietnam Military History Institute and the Ho Chi Minh Museum co-organised a talk on the “Great Spring Victory 1975” on April 21 with ten people who witnessed the event.
They are those who used to work for the US-backed Saigon regime, and Buddhist monks, nuns and priests, who ran secret activities to contribute to fully-liberating Saigon.
Trieu Quoc Manh, an ex-judge for the Saigon regime, who was invited to act as Police Chief of Saigon and Gia Dinh province, recalled his release of political prisoners captured during the regime.
The chief nun of the Ngoc Phuong monastery said that religious dignitaries had enthusiastically mobilized Buddhist followers to take part in various movements, including those to claim peace and release political prisoners.
Huynh Van Cang, a former member of the HCM City Party Committee and Director of the municipal Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Department, said he and other officials had persuaded a large number of draft dodgers and military officers serving the Saigon regime to fight for the liberation of the south.
The Great Spring Victory on April 30, 1975 is a shining symbol of revolutionary heroism of Vietnam and is one of the most outstanding events of the 20th century.
04-28-2010, 07:20 PM
#120
Banned
Joined APC: Feb 2007
Position: Delta Gear Slinger
Posts: 415
And yes, it is 100% tax free. Mekong Airlines will pay each pilots' local taxes; therefore, the stated monthly salary is tax free.
