I completely agree that current employees taking a stand against this situation is a way to stamp it out.
However, speaking as a parent of 4 ambitious kids, having a dream and continuing to persue that dream when all that awaits is a 6 month temporary contract which doesn't even cover your loan, is ridiculous. I guess it's too late for your son but I hope many budding self financing pilots read your post and realise what a dreadful industry it is ( not being able to pay the bills if you don't get 50hrs a month).
I always tell my kids that they can do anything with a little talent and a bucketful of determination but, if they told me they wanted to be pilot in today's airline industry I'd say they had a better chance of earning a living on Xfactor!
Having said that, little boys will always want to be pilots and as long as airlines are willing to take advantage of those dreams this situation will never end.
Plus your comparison of applicant numbers, try 1000 applicants for every post!! Then you would soon realise you could reduce your package!