Having read the various posts debating the apparent easiness vs difficulty of being a pilot when compared to other industry professionals, may I offer the following for us to ponder...
Why do I think pilots should get paid more?
Because when things go bad in the courtroom, the plaintiff or the defendant will suffer much more than the lawyer. The worst-case scenario for the lawyer is that he gets disbarred and cannot practise law. But he still gets to go home and reflect on it.
Because when things go bad in the operating theater, the patient suffers much more than the surgeon. The worst-case scenario for the surgeon is that he gets done for malpractice, and can no longer practise medicine. But he still gets to go home and reflect on it.
Because when things go bad in the cockpit, the lives of the two pilots, nine cabin crew, and the one-hundred and seventy or so passengers ALL hang in the balance. And unfortunately in some cases, no-one gets to go home because the bodies cannot be identified in the wreckage.
Whilst I would never wish this to happen to anyone, I sometimes imagine a scenerio where a planeload of senior airline execs and their beancounters suffer a catastrophic event in flight. It is their lives who are now completely and utterly in the hands of the "cheap labour" up front. And I wonder if, as those frightened execs/beancounters contemplate whether they'll get home to their familes that night, will any of them spare a thought to ask themselves if those two guys are getting paid enough right now?