View from the other side
First allow me to state that I agree that quite a substantial number of GA award rates are far below what is merited given the effort, commitment and professionalism of pilots working their way up the ladder.
I can categorically tell you that the General Public (of which I am one to all intents and purposes), at least the section that I meet and work with on a daily basis have no idea what Pilots are paid, if anything the impression is that pilots to a man earn well in excess of what most people do, this is compounded by their lack of distinction bewteen GA and the Lines.
They have little idea of the cost of endorsements or type ratings, how difficult and how hard it is to get time up, how being away from home and how much sacrifice many pilots give up to get that experience, house, family, stability and relationships all suffer.
The General belief is that Line pilots earn quite alot for what they do, many are surprised when I inform them that a new-ish FO on a RPT Jet probably earns no more than they do, the overriding perception is misunderstood and is normally based on the flagship line of the country they live in, in this case the yardstick for assessing pilots salaries is Qantas, thus this award is perceived to be inherited by all pilots regardless of industry segment.
They are shocked, for a small while at least, when they are informed that most GA pilots earn well under 50K, and I doubt they would believe that Captain Norris earned 20K+.
A clear and easily understood message is easily explained by illustrating simply what the low-costers in europe earn. Far less than their peers in Finance, law and so forth. Forgive me but the Ryanair High Pay Airline banner on the PPrune boards brought more than a little smile to my face.
My heart goes out to you Fiona, and also many other pilots who are doing the yards.
Finally, There are of course legacy perception-issues here, Aer Lingus and BA on Intercontinental and indeed the top tier LAX-SYD routes for Qantas pay quite well, but these routes are flown by pilots with decades of experience, and those awards are merited by the profitibility of the route, seniority and experience of the men and women involved.
There is unfortunately no major distinction made by the majority of joe public.
As to there being too many pilots, I am not sure that can easily be fixed I don't have an answer, as the drawcard thatI have mentioned above is a very comfortable salary doing a perceived rather easy job from two stories up on a 18-wheeler, the reality is of course quite different which I'm sure many here can attest.
I personally would love to join your ranks, however I have commitments to family, kids and a wife, and that is not negotiable at this stage. Also my personality does not lend itself to cuttng corners to make a buck, I'd last a day or so at a shonky operator.
Hats off to you who stick it out.
7g