I think the thread has started to go off in the wrong direction. Hugofly makes some good observations and its nice to see someone say out loud they love teaching and wouldn't want to do anything else. I believe the industry needs more people like this to survive and keep the standards where they need to be. I know there are schools that would pay more for dedicated instructors who are not racing off to the airlines as soon as they get the hours needed. I guess the real question is, what are these type of instructors worth, and perhaps, as already commented on this thread, what is a good school, looking for these type of instructors, willing to or can afford to pay? I do feel the 'hours building' instructors, which are still needed to meet training demand, have managed to drive the wages down. Its not their fault, its just old fashioned capitalism at work.
Whatever the answer might be, I think the industry has to wake up to the idea that good dedicated instructors are worth a lot more than 25K a year! - I hope everyone agrees with that, after all, this is the 'flying instructors and examiners' forum!!