Some history is in order to show the absurdity of the criticism of Great Lakes and any opinion that one regional is better than another in the large scheme of things.
Until about ten years ago and prior, many regionals, ACA, SkyWest and Express Jet, for instance required a pilot to pay $10,000+ to sit in ground school and make 12-14K first year to throw gear in a Metro, 1900 or J32. There were some exceptions if your log met certain times where that fee could be waved, but for many, they had to pony up. American Eagle and Mesa were two that I know never charged that fee, not that they were any better per-se, you had to pay in other ways.
Great Lakes does represent an anachronism from previous times and as the market progresses they will more than likely adjust their hiring and pilot retention practices. The people that manage and staff Great Lakes read the same papers, industry news and more than likely forums that you do, so none of this is a revelation to anybody. The brutal truth is that as long as they are still able to staff the airline, why should they change anything? And before you all pat yourself on the back that you are somehow better than a pilot who chooses to fly for them, understand that the last ten years have been a true aberration from the normal status quo. To wit, Delta Air Lines TA about to be voted on. A second or third year FO on a 737 will make more than a capped out, 20 year SkyWest or Republic captain makes. Where back in 1992, a United 727 made two or three flights from a hub to a second tier city, with the CA pulling down 200+K a year, the FO was pulling $170+K a year and the FE was just below that, in 1990 dollars too. Now a SkyWest or Republic crew congratulates themselves on their good fortune to fly that route with wages that are a fraction of that, and in todays' dollars! From that perspective they are in the same boat as Great Lakes, only with false sense of superiority.
Then you ask, whose fault is this? This finger pointing that it is Great lakes pilots lowering that bar? Express Jet pilots flying old 727 routes? How about the previous generation senior, Major pilots who allowed the scope to put RJ’s on those routes and the previous management that took advantage human nature to lower the wages under this perception of “express” service with the same livery and tickets sold but now flown by cheaper pilots. Oh I know, it's ALPA's fault, that's nice to wrap our minds around, but didn't they have to broker the best deal possible within an unsympathetic political climate, management who held the cards using post 9/11 and fuel prices among a myriad of other reasons to argue for lost pay and benefits, and a desperate pilot group made up of soon to be retired pilots who didn't plan for anything other than their pension and junior pilots who were or were on the brink of furlough? So it looks like it’s our entire fault and to single out any one group, ignores the self interest in all the other groups trying to be successful with this career. But the one exception is that the Great Lakes pilots don’t have any illusions that they are anything but regional/commuter pilots, unlike other groups who again, maintain a dillusion that they are something more than commuter pilots, but “hey, it’s glass and the engines are under the wing, or if you squint, it’s almost as big as a DC-9”.
If history is any indication of the future, the other airlines will more than likely follow Delta's TA to one degree or other and the historic pecking order of the airlines to pursue for a career will be re-established, with the Major Passenger carriers on top followed by the Nationals, and Cargo, corporate and then a long step down to the Regionals/Commuters. There is still a lot of ground to cover, but Delta's shot across the bow is a welcome sign of things to come.