For me it is about raising the bar, how do you get guys that want to work at an airline not to get blinded by the big cool airplane? To realize that they are worth more than 20/hr? To actually start at a livable wage? The days only being an FO for a year or two are over. Each and every person who gets hired on at an airline should start acting like that is the place they are going to retire and treat is as such.
The FAA and management want professionalism, pay for it.
The majors and ALPA want to stop the erosion of their place in this world, find some way to make the people they are outsourcing to cost more, ie. pay for it.
We are in a highly skilled profession yet we are paid and treated like we work at Wal-mart. Why? Because we, as a pilot group, have allowed it to happen. Short-sighted leadership at ALPA pre and post deregulation. This attitude of looking out for oneself first and last. I have heard many times from senior captains that they only have to ride it out for 3 - 4 more years and then they don't care what happens, as long as their pay and benefits aren't affected.
I don't know I could go on, but I see requiring an ATP for employment at a 121 carrier as a step in the right direction.