As an E145 CA I think Im qualified to speak on the subject. Those who do fly "RJ's" Embraer or otherwise know that there is nothing regional about them except the pay.
Here's how it went down at my airline. The company decided to get these airplanes and knew the mainline group would get really pissed about it. So they went to them and said "Dont worry about it, it's just an ATR without props. Express will continue to feed the mainline but with quieter airplanes" Then they came to us and said, "Yes, they are kinda like jets but they are just turbo-props without props" and negotiated the pay as a larger turbo prop as opposed to a smaller "mainline" jet. A short 8 years later they have all but replaced Cleveland as a Continental hub and we are flying routes such as Newark to Omaha and Houston to Toronto.
So, why is everyone so upset by the term RJ? Well, mainline pilots hate them because their managements have chosen to take mainline flying and send it to the lower paid "regionals". Embraer and Canadair pilots hate being called an RJ pilot because it somehow degrades them as lesser pilots, its bad enough we are paid so much less than other jet pilots. Its a big sham and the entire industry of pilots fell for it.....I do get annoyed because ALPA, MY union, has a policy of equal pay for equal work, unless your an "RJ" pilot. I understand that my airplane doesnt carry as many people and as a result it should pay less than a 737 but the E145 is no where near the same scale. If you took the E145 pay and extrapolated the pay upward to an aircraft that had as many seats as a 737, most of the 737 pilots would end up loosing half their pay.
Jetblue on the other hand is actually doing it right, it will be flown by mainline pilots for mainline wages. I assume they will base the pay on reduced A320 pay. I'm sure they will do right by their employees and pay them fairly. Good for you guys, I wish nothing but the best for Jetblue, they are definatly an industry leader and an example to be followed. No whipsawing and no BS.