I think it is a case of "perception meets reality"
The general expensiveness of life in OZ/NZ combined with low wages made GA path extremely unattractive. On top of that - the introduction of VET FEE-HELP loans practically killed private flying schools and doubled the costs of the flight training.
Only this one would put these questions into prospective student's head: "Will I ever repay that flying 206? Hold on, how long will it take before I even get to fly 206?"
At the same time, pilot demand has increased to the point where bean counters statistically worked out that commercial benefit of putting 250hrs cadet into a right seat of 737/320 far outweighs a risk of said cadet flying it into the ground. At the end of the day, that's what insurance is for.
To date, they have proven themselves right and it shows from current job market trends. Just have to look how many large players in Asia/Europe/States have transitioned to cadetship schemes. Same as above - training costs are exorbitant, but they are repaid quite quickly and that incentive of flying a jet is simply irresistible.
Which path would one pick? Will anybody turn down an opportunity to get into the airline right here, right now? Don't think so.
In my opinion, GA operators are yet to come to terms with the fact that they are offering an inferior product in a buyers market. But even in this case, competing with big players will be extremely hard and will require some drastic changes starting from the reduction of required flight hours and maybe going as far as in-house flight training.
I honestly don't envy these guys. They have extremely hard times ahead.
Comrade