My view is:
There isn't a single pilot on earth who does it for the money. I think that if one looks at the lucrative side of it he will always be unsatisfied with the job (if he gets one) but if one loves flying and airplanes he will likely get a job in the industry and always be glad of what he does.
[RANT]Which is exactly what Case One meant when he/she mentioned pilots "selling themselves short".
That sentiment ( doing it for the love) is why the industry has been able to shift the burden of training cost onto the student pilot, why T&Cs are plunging across the industry, and above all it's far to simplistic to think that the old
like me are just whinging about T&Cs because we've had enough of flying. After 30 years at the sharp end I and many of my peer group will still own up to getting a kick out of the likes of a smooth landing on a c***py day, an on time arrival, sharing a beer with colleagues downroute, and saying goodbye to the passengers having delivered them safely to their destination.
But as far as the Boss is concerned - I tell him like every other Commercial Licence holder I'm a highly skilled professional and I'm b****ed if I'm going to work for steadily reducing T&Cs ...and IMHO the sooner we all start thinking along the same lines the better.[/RANT]