Yes the pay is a factor, but for me when they required 1,500 hours to be hired is the real reason of the shortage.
alot pilots or pilots wannabees don't want to work for a living, so they have in the past accepted the lower wages
Oh come on. You can get a CFI with an MEI and rack up 1500 hours in a year or two. Even get 50-100 multi. There are still plenty of jobs out there, and they pay about what the commuters do.
The Jonathan Ornsteins of the industry did this. It used to be impossible to get a job at the carriers with less then 5000 hours. Too much, but that was the market. At least people who survived that knew what they were doing - and mostly did NOT dump a Dash 8 into the ground with 50 souls on board.
The salaries will rise when they can't fly their contracted flights. The regionals are fee for departure - the majors pay them to push people into their system. Either they meet their contracts or they go under. Eventually it will happen: they have to get the qualified people. And pay them.