So we just got a little interview about Variant and Criterion recently here

https://www.inverse.com/gaming/ffxiv...eons-interview

Of course the biggest thing to take notice of is
That said, the difficulty of Criterion Dungeons is comparable to an eight-player Savage raid, if not harder, so there were also comments that felt the current rewards aren’t motivating enough to attempt the content.

The rewards need to be determined very carefully in relation to rewards for other content, but we will continue deliberating on the idea to satisfy as many players as possible.
So they are aware that rewards are lacking but its sadly is going to take some time for that to change.