Unfortuneately, the major problem is public ignorance of Aircraft Maintenance Engineers, hence the low priority. As I'm sure everyone has experienced, when my wife says 'my husbands an aircraft engineer' the usual ignorant reply is 'oh I suppose there must be mechanics for planes like there are for cars'. This is not lost by the folk in the upper echelons of both airlines and engineering companies, hence the people in the departments where the general public can relate to have a higher profile. This was most apparant during my time in an office at Failing Line Services. The previleges and jollies afford me and my office colleagues compared to what the guys on the line and in the hangar was, well, embarrasing.
A similar problem also occurs in the unionised airline environment. The airline that I once worked for, the maple leaf type, had Licensed Aircraft Engineers, Flight despatchers and car mechanics all in the same union. The despatchers were paid the most because they had to pass an exam to become a despatcher. The difference between a car mechanic and an A/C engineer was £50 per month. Sadly, despite pressing the issue, no one wanted to break away from the transit van mechanics because we were all working men together.
A/C engineers must first of all shake off the other clingers on and be self representing before any further progress can be made in attaining What The Job Is Worth.