And there lies the problem. You, like easyJet, have just assumed that an SO is going to be a twenty something cadet with no experience. There is currently no scope for appropriately positioning someone with more experience further up the scale as you and the company just assume everyone comes straight from CTC into the RHS. There are exceptions and they should be treated as such.
With my experience I would suggest that it is not too much to ask to go straight into an FO position at the very least. I know it's only a year in the greater scheme of things but that's still a long time and, coupled with the the fact that LH is part of the endgame, that's why I voted with my feet.
In most sectors experience is rewarded with a salary commensurate. So, if you move from Bank A to B or are promoted within the same company you are rewarded with a higher salary as you do a job that someone else can't, or hasn't got the requisite experience to. Sadly, in this situation a CTC cadet with 50 sectors training can fulfill the job of competent co-pilot just as well as you, thus you are not rewarded for your experience, however much you value it.
Any decision to join eJ must take this into account. You will, however, be able to enter the command process quite soon and then the 120k will be yours!