Pilots are unfortunately not worth as much to an airline as we all would like to think.
For a start, there are plenty of us. What we do isn't particularily difficult (on a normal day) and it is hard to "add value" to what we do on a day to day basis.
Arguments such as "we're in charge of millions of pounds of equipment" or "we're stopping crashes daily" etc.etc are I'm afraid, moot. That is what we are supposed to do. That's simply what the job entails. It doesn't guarantee you a high salary.
Companies value employees on what value they offer. Pilots aren't revenue raisers anymore than bus drivers or train drivers are. We facilitate things, but as individuals we aren't worth anymore than someone else with the same qualifications.
The relentless downward drive on T&C's is in part due to people like MOL, but it is also due to the fact that the job itself has changed. No longer are we the god like figures of the '50's and '60's. Much of the skill has been taken away from flying with the advent of better avionics and aircraft.
The old example of an executive removing one olive from each meal and saving their company a vast sum of money, shows why higher salaries go to people who control things like that. It isn't that they are smarter, harder working or anything else, it is just that their contribution makes a tangible and measureable difference and is more easily rewarded.
I'm not saying that this is right, it's just how it is and pilots need to look at what they do actually bring to a company other than just the basics of flying an aircraft safely from A to B. Any idiot can do that. I know that to be true, because I can do it...
As one airline HR director said to me. "Pilots do nothing but whinge, they never give any real reason to pay them any more."
Taking that into account, in my opinion, pilots should paid well for reasons such as;
They are managers of a large team.
They have the ability to directly affect costs via fuel burn, routings, not missing slots etc.
They are one of the public faces of the company (difficult with locked cockpit doors now) but how often do you see anyone from the flight deck actually meeting and greeting pax? How often do you hear PA's that actually make you wonder if the crew give a monkeys about anything?
They have the authority to make large financial decisions. Fuel, pax offloading etc.
They are responsible for a large piece of company property and ensuring that it is not only undamaged, but that it is operated in the most cost effective manner, both on a short term and long term basis.
We are the decision makers in an emergency. Our job is to protect the lives of our passengers when something goes wrong and therefore protect the company image. Capt. Sullenberger is a good example of why we need experienced, well paid people in the cockpit. How much
PR value has he added to his company?
These are some of the arguments that can be used.
Nonsense stuff like "we fly planes and make sure they don't crash" is not an argument that any airline manager is going to listen too or give a hoot about nor are whinges about how much training costs us. If you don't like the cost, then don't do it.