The problem is not just too many unemployed pilots.....but too many agencies too. As contracts arise, these agencies try to undercut each other to get the contract...................and at the end of the foodchain the poor pilot is the one left to accept whatever lousy deal is on offer.
A classic case is the Hainan airlines contract in China. It seems that every three weeks a new agency is seeking pilots for this deal, but in reality all they have done is approach Hainan with an offer to undercut the previous agency. Every agency has exactly the same pilots on their books....................it just remains to be seen which agency will get the contract down to $1 a month!