I cant imagine there has been any drop in standards. It is clearly in CTCs interests that you pass - and the standard for issuing a commercial pilot license is well defined by the relevant authorities.
The biggest question still has to be about job prospects ?
Spending 100K for 12+ months in a hold pool then 'flexi-crew' is probably not such a great deal ? Especially if you need to renew instrument ratings in that time.
However if you do eventually gain a full time contract then CTC might be considered a reasonable longer term investment ?