The best option would be to take the operation back, pilots and all. 717 crew would be happier and all this nastyness may just be resolved.
Unlimited supply of pilots is the foundation piece of an IR model which uses, contractors, regional affiliates and internal pressure to lower unit labour cost. Qantas like most airlines have floors of people dedicated to creating labour cost tension to drive better pilot operating costs. Whether that costs way more than any actualised benefit is not relevant: The apparatus is huge and admitting their model is broken questions the very survival of their whole adversarial structure.
It's cheap as to own/lease and run and is perfect for the thinner, longer routes.
Certain caveats also apply with fuel price though, otherwise a bit like the F100.