Right on Dan - its all about mortality - or the level of risk you are perceived to be exposed to - which determines the amount of training (and reward) you receive.
An airmail pilot in 1926 earned almost a MILLION dollars ( in 2006 dollars - adjusted for inflation etc ) per year, but did not live very long.
Cathay A scale pilots in the early days (1950's) were on several HUNDRED THOUSAND a year.
Today I know pilots in Canada ( JAZZ ) who work for 40 000 CA$ a year.
WHY????
Cause flying has become easier, there's less decision making and planes safer. We are worth less because we dont die so often any more....
However sooner or later less and less training and experience will not be balanced any more by safer and safer aircraft - and we will start to die again. Only then things will change.
Or Airbus will succeed and build them pilotless...