Rubbish. In the UK for instance there's a shortage of 100,000 HGV drivers. The super market shelves are half empty. Great pay, far better lifestyle and flexibility than flying. And a similar skill set needed.
Unless it's your fragile ego preventing you leaving this now toxic aviation industry, I don't really understand why anyone would keep chasing the bottom of the barrel. Especially with Cathay, which has gone from being one of the best paid and rewarding airlines to work for 10-20 years ago to quite possibly the absolute worst (taking into account the quality of life vis a vis renumeration and the truly dreadful dystopian life in Hong Kong).
But I take your point - if you are at CX, approaching 55, worked here for a decade or two, and not able to jack it all in with a fair amount of savings you have gone severely off piste at some point, and frankly, it would be hopeless whatever or wherever you chose to go. So then yes, you might be stuck working for these
mill owners.