Just a thought...
All markets, including the Pilot market is built on "supply and demand".
Current pilot supply: about 5.000
Demand from airlines: max 200 jobs
So guess what! Airlines are taking advantage of this...
Not a big surprise there, but due to the fact that many pilots (not all pilots, but many) come from a good economic background, many are both willing and able to accept worse T&C's to get into the cockpit...
Once the demand for pilots increases (and a pilot shortage is predicted by 2014!) then the T&C's will automatically get better and better!
Even Ryan Air will need to start offering industry standard (no, not current industry standards, but those as they were in 2007! Or else O'Leary will need to get his own ATP to keep "cattle class" in existence.
Perhaps a Union for unemployed pilots and starting pilots would be a way to battle these conditions! That way we can all say NO! collectively to less-than-minimum wages and horrid T&C's... Just a thought...