Well, before working for EZY, I had a long-term job with a national carrier. Things went well and salaries did increase. Late on, when they went bad, we took a cut in pay. The trick is to keep the pilots thinking they are expensive, whereas in the fixed costs, the pay they receive is a smaller fraction than you would think.
By the way, that national carrier went bust, as a result of gross misinvestment in failing airlines - the boys up front had nowt to do with it.
Internal squabbling doesn't help a united civilised front to management, which is what is needed here, rather than rising to the bait thrown down by the pork sword of an Irish pig in the posts above...