Perhaps you will get a better feel for the pay if you look at it without exchange rates interfering and allied to the whole package. The UAE Dirham is tied to the US dollar at a rate of 3.67, so the pay is as follows (both before and after tax):
First Officers:
Yr1 $4564/month
Yr2 $4704
Yr3 $4846
Captains:
Yr1 $6517/month
Yr2 $6713
Yr3 $6915
Yr18 $10785
Of note, the Captains starting salary is based on a step increase of his F/Os salary. The minimum is above, were his time to command to exceed 3 years then he would move onto a higher rung of Captain's salary when promoted.
Accomodation provided or $23,000/annum F/O, $26,000 Capt housing allowance.
42 days leave with annual leave ticket
Family Medical Cover
Education Support Allowance
Provident Fund 12% company contribution rising to 15%.
I don't know how much is enough, the figure varies from individual to individual. A senior Captain with Emirates earns less than a lot of other airlines but when tax is brought into the equation fares pretty well.
I do know that a lot of people question how EK can have achieved such good results in a downturn. The answer lies in cost control.
When I taxi past a United 777 at Heathrow the guy sitting in the F/Os seat earns nearly as much as our entire crew and the guy in the left even more than that. That said, we are in an enviable commercial position within the industry and have just been granted a healthy profit share that adds up to $9000 for the F/O at the bottom and $20,000 for the Capt on top.
Hope that helps but I suspect it won't. If money is all that is at issue lets resurrect Sabena and then all go on strike for more pay as the airline goes bankrupt.