1. Take your B777 to an MRO or two and start negotiating for routine maintenance and you're talking labour rates of US50 to US70 an hour. Throw in major repairs and it goes up to US120.
2. Take your BMW or Mercedes Benz to the local workshop and they're asking US90 an hour for a Service. Take it in for major damage repairs and labour rates aren't even on the table.
Labour rates don't translate directly into wages paid, but the fact is garage mechanics have been more in demend than aeroplane maintenance technicians and the relative wages reflected that. Many years ago I was on a B747 electrical course with an instrument supervisor who wasn't doing the course to get more qualifications and higher pay, he was doing it just to be able to retain his supervisor status and continue in the same job. He left before the end of the course to join Plessey - maintaining traffic lights along Western Avenue. No licences needed and with higher pay and better working hours.
Not much has changed in the intervening thirty years, but I believe that things may finally be about to change. Some of the European airlines calling us for slots aren't doing it because we're cheaper (which we are), its because the slots simply aren't available in Europe.