Guv
It is really not that pilots are paranoid about mgmt "out to get them", it is that mgmt always bleat about being unable to pay the going rate, and ask for "breathing space" from the pilots, and then piss away the savings given, in mgmt inefficiency.
After going through this cycle many times, pilots are very skeptical of the "bona fides" of the need for sacrifice from them, as when the alleged hard times have passed, there is a distinct lack of enthusiasm in the rate of restoration of compensation.
When compensation is tied to productivity and profits, the wily beancounters can produce almost any picture you want, so once again, pilot skepticism on depending on the good faith of beancounters and management is common.
It all boils down to trust, and empirical evidence has taught pilots that it is not wise to blindly trust those who hold the purse strings. There may be a few who are worthy, but by and large a defensive posture is a wise precaution.