C173 I think it would be counterproductive to post salary details here as anyone who earns more than 50k a year is perceived to be a filthy rich pig who contributes nothing to the nation.
A myth happily promoted by Labour and seemingly the coalition these days.
I believe that airline pilots are reasonably compensated but are not over paid by any stretch and given that it takes an awful lot of work to get the position and doesn't take much to lose it (and CASA medical are making it easier to lose your medical) a reasonable salary is needed to compensate for the risk. Note: pilots working for anyone other than the major airlines are paid rubbish wages.
I am comfortable, live in a nice house (but not a flashy McMansion) drive one car that is new and another that is 7 years old. My kids are being educated in a middle of the road private school - again not the top of the line prestigious school, but not a crappy one either.
The point I am trying to make is that I don't believe we, as a group, can win the "but our salaries are not the problem" argument in the court of popular opinion, regardless of the truth of the matter.
We can easily be depicted as elitist, over paid and underworked because we don't seem to work all that often (seem is the key word here), we mostly wear uniforms that make us look important(ish) and the mythology is we are really well paid.
I don't know how the real facts can be brought to light - aeroplane leases on non flying aircraft, unproductive scheduling and rostering practices, operational decisions by operations and crewing departments that cost tens of thousands and do so on a daily basis. These are the things that make the difference between profit and loss, yet they are difficult to prove and even harder to explain to the great unwashed.
Sorry, I am rambling, but I just don't see how we can win over the public