Personally, I don't feel the rate of pay is as important as the WAY its paid. By this I mean that you should be looking for a regular WAGE, not being paid only for flying hours. Who pays for the briefing time? Who pays for refueling or admin tasks? How do you manage your duty hours when you may have been at work all day and just about to go home when your ONLY prospect for the entire day arrives on the doorstep? Are you going to say "come back tomorrow? Of course not! You have to EAT and pay RENT, and support your FAMILY!
When you don't get paid for ground time, you tend to do briefs on the way to the aircraft and debrief whilst taxying back from the runway. This is not a professional or fair way to treat the student. He/she is paying the entire price for the trip, and therefore deserves your best attention and ability, neither of which will be forthcoming.
When you don't get paid for ground time, you tend to fly more sorties per day than is safe/possible/professional. AGAIN the poor student suffers because he/she has an instructor that can't remember what's going on because they're so damned tired! AND they're fudging the books and flying 7 days straight, 4 weeks a month etc. Why do you think that flight and duty times were invented?
How do I have the boldness to make these statements? Of course, because I have been there! My first (7-day/wk) aviation job paid HALF my regular 5-day per week truck driving job, and there were no benefits such as sick leave, holiday pay, insurance etc. I was paid a flat rate of $240/week gross (1987 dollars). I was Chief Pilot (only pilot, cleaner, admin, etc) for an outback charter business flying a 6-seat single. I worked pretty hard for my money in conditions that were far less than desirable - but it was my first job and I just HAD to accept it didn't I!
My second flying job was instructing in a capital city flying school. I was a bare-bones Grade 3 with 500 hours in my log. The pay was $15 per flying hour and I was expected to be there sunup to sundown seven days a week and look after my books. My students were invariably stolen by the senior Grade 2 (trainee/deputy CFI). I would sometimes have 7 flights booked for the next day, only to arrive at work and find that four of them had been moved across the booking sheet to the Gr2 because he didn't have enough work! This happened at least twice a week, EVERY week. Sometimes I couldn't even make enough to pay my rent, but I was at work 60+ hours a week. I parted company (not reluctantly) as soon as I had my 200 hours instructing.
Since then I've been paid a wage, and generally enjoyed myself as a professional, career instructor. I am not unique in this industry (although we all like to think we are), but I have managed quite well over the last few years. My last job in Aus (1993) was with a major flying college and I was earning $52k with the benefits. Add to that, the various companies I've worked for have upgraded my licences and ratings and generally paid for all endorsements and type-ratings along the way.
This is how a professional career should progress! If you intend to stick with instructing (or truck driving, accounting, shelf-stocking etc.) you should expect to progress up the pay scale and enjoy better conditions and benefits as you gain experience. You've paid enough to allow entry to this semi-exclusive club. Surely you should be paid for your efforts.
It is only when flight instructing FINALLY attracts a decent wage that we will get long-term, experienced instructors with the desire to remain in their job AND, (goodness knows!) give the student value for money and a decent aviation education. Along the way, your boss will profit handsomly because YOU will be in demand, having built a reputation as a "stayer" and somebody with the knowledge and interest to pass it on.
Sermon ends.
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Gear.... DOWN, Three greens!