Let's not make martyrs out of regional pilots working for food stamps. If anything, the overabundance of idiots willing to fly a shiny multi-million dollar airplane for $10/hour is the main reason wages and QOL were kept low for so long. The simple laws of supply and demand apply here. For every 1 guy flying there were 10 more willing to do your job for less. Nowadays that’s obviously not the case. Maybe this new generation wizened up. Perhaps new pilots no longer have a sparkle in their eye over a shiny jet and realize it’s just a job. Now, the regionals either need to adjust to market conditions or die.