Originally Posted by N19906

Well, I'll give you a little insight as to "Why". (Before we get started, yes, I'm a "poolie" for someone.)

A lot of us got hired before 9/11, and a few after. When that happened, life stopped. A lot got furloughed, some downgraded etc. Then we had the 65 rule. Then we had the 2008 housing/economic meltdown. We've finally gotten to a place where there's a lot of movement to the majors and the regionals are hurting. Thank god!
During that 15-ish year stalemate, what happened? We got older and greyer, and went from twenty-somethings to forty-somethings.
You get a lot more settled as you age. People found girlfriends, got married, bought homes, had kids, put them in school, (college is coming), got much higher fixed costs...
Yeah, they could dive back into that rat race for the majors if they wanted, but you look in the mirror in the morning, as you get ready to commute again, and ask yourself, "Do I want to start all over again?"
To be on the bottom, at some base far from home; how many years to upgrade vs. how many years left until 65. Where would you be bidding then, at what base? What would your QOL be? How many years until your pay matches what you make now? (+4 for me), and when would you break even?
Eventually, you reach a point where your family is more important than getting to a major. I understand why a lot of senior guys stay put, the marginal benefits don't outweigh the upheaval the move would cause.
My last 2-year FO is off to Atlas... Good for him! I'm really glad things have turned around for you younger guys, but don't ***** at the aged critters taking up space in the left seat, they have good reasons. They're not taking your slots at the majors.

As for a new-hire shortage. Yeah, it's happening. We're below our hiring targets, and there are some really unique "characters" in the ones we are finding.