I suspect it’s more along the lines of “who blinks first”. In an ingrained culture of cost cutting amongst a crowd of cost cutters, the person who first makes the suggestion that pilots be paid more will be shown the door. To surmise they (the managers) know they have done something wrong is giving them way too much credit. They know they are doing everything right. Many pilots have tried to explain the situation. It doesn’t work. Likewise, to suggest the managers don’t know what is going on is naive. To argue otherwise is the equivalent of beating your head against a brick wall.
The best action to take for the Rex pilots with experience is to move on. When the managers see the house of cards falling down around them, maybe things will change…but, don’t bank on it. Get out and don’t look back.