min pay / max pay

[LSDeep]

some thoughts based on events in germany for you. a "handful" of mailman (yep the guys that bring your snailmail) gets a minimum salary deal at nearly 10 (yes TEN) euro an hour minimum pay. cool isn't it? works out to about $600 a week, $2400 a month for a "no brain" employment.
WHY? combination of a strong union / and a former monopoly service (the german Bundespost) to keep the monopoly (by pushing lowpay pricks out) and make the "paperboy" happy (and therefore his union).

so what should you learn from it (call it distill out of all the crap)?

how is it with:

yes some ppl (even complete morons) make money as owners of dc's. cert agencies do well the bigger they are, the better they do.

they still raise your membership fees every year. hey, you cough it up, so why not - let's try to find the NOMORE point

comes somehow to the union issue again... in a way.... yep i know, its all different and "not possible" blablablubbersprotzoggle.

well, it isn't - because you f*cking w*nkers work for sh*t and sometimes even free!!!!

you ever think about it, what would be happen if you would really aproach your job with realistic economic goals - like ... i wanna sit in the sun, don't work too much, make decent money, be able to afford a car and a house.....
well - know what - i do! i work about half the hours of my old instructor job, do (kind of) f**k all..., sit in the sun, have (and can afford) 1st world fun and gadgets. how?? i got my d**ned butt out of fulltime slave labour!

i still dive every week for fun, i teach courses (i like) every month making more money .

sometimes i miss my fulltime beachbum thing, thinking about my still fulltime beach, easy - well paid job, and suddenly 50% of the course fee freelance job .....

Why work 80hrs + a week for $250, If you can work 35hrs for $500

[LSDeep]

we write nov. 2009 now and i just like to update this issue! i just came back from a semi-comprehensive diving trip. what i encountered was instructors working for U$ 100 and even less, DM's working for free, etc.!
it leaves you with the question "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU GUYS?
you paid dearly to get to the point you are so far with your certification agency. and now you work for $100 a week??

well, generally i would say - you deserve it!!!!! just because you take the deal.

on the other end -WAKE UP!

[Sharki]

Well said Isdeep! But as long as some ppl will work for this kind of money, you will never end this discussion... I had endless discussion with some "friends" and they think going out there for 6-12 months just for fun and the diving, they do it for food and bed and no payment... They don't care because they don't want to make as a living for the rest of their lives. So ppl like them make a market like this just realisable...

[bletso]

As long as LDC's continue to offer $99.00 OW classes, and young bucks are willing to dive to get free air there will be no way to establish good work standards, at least in the US.

Yes, I was in Jacksonville FL last week and one of the shops was offering OW for $99.00! Unbelievable.

Dale

[Sharki]

This is a shame. Here in Switzerland a owd class is around 800 chf, just recently I saw an advert offering the same class for 350chf. Special deal for a limited time... Don't know how this will pay the costs...

[LSDeep]

Sept 14, 2011 9:36:07 GMT -5 Sharki said:

This is a shame. Here in Switzerland a owd class is around 800 chf, just recently I saw an advert offering the same class for 350chf. Special deal for a limited time... Don't know how this will pay the costs...

that i saw also during my recent time in the states (usa). wasn't all so great anymore after you bringing all the required stuff for the course (mask, fins, snorkel, manual, workbook etc.). anyway, still the cost will add up - but friggin' CHF 800 sounds insane!

[LSDeep]

what is the percentage for the instructor teaching the course?

[Sharki]

Well what should I say.... something like the Swiss are rich as hell and will pay everything you want? ;D
Or more likely the truth: they take the mick out of us because they think everyone is rich as hell here... But the living costs, insurance cost etc are very high and the Swiss have no more money than the rest of the world (talking about the normal beings...).

So back to the topic. A Swiss instructor will get around 150 CHF per student. A big part goes to PADI, some for the dive centers costs and the rest for the dive center owner. At the end there is not much left.

If I look at the money I get as a instructor, then the money is more or less for my expenses (car travel, food and so on). So why the heck am I doing this job? Because I love it and it is a hobby, a living is possible, but more possible than cost-effective....