Chan was understood to be looking to stand down in 2012, although she stayed on and became one of five lawmakers representing the new "super seat", so called because the voter base of 3.2 million gave the winners a bigger mandate than their 65 Legco colleagues.

Chan would only say she would rather travel for leisure and engage in policy advocacy outside the legislature, because she enjoyed working with people on issues such as urban renewal in Kowloon East.

Nevertheless, just as she was about to step into a lift to return to her office at the Legco complex in Admiralty, the Federation of Trade Unions legislator could not help touching on a controversy she had waded into, by trying to help an undocumented mainland boy emerge from life under the radar in Hong Kong.

"People will make a fair judgment," she said on Wednesday, referring to criticism of her hosting of a May 21 media conference to help 12-year-old Siu Yau-wai stay on in the city.

Yau-wai was brought to Hong Kong at age three, according to his grandmother Chow Siu-shuen, 67, who suggested now was the time he ended nine years in hiding and started schooling.

But Chan's airing of the family's predicament raised a hue and cry among radical groups. About 40 people shouted in front of her Wong Tai Sin office two days later, accusing her of "betraying" the city. They said authorities would set a dangerous precedent if they listened to Chan and allowed the boy residency.

Dismissing the naysayers, Chan reiterated she had no regrets. "I have done nothing wrong," she told RTHK last Monday. "I just want him to be able to integrate with society and … know more about Hong Kong. I am OK with any criticism."

With those words, Chan indicated how much she was at ease with her public image, having lived through years in politics.

Her popularity was riding high in November 2012 when she beat 69 Legco colleagues to top a University of Hong Kong survey. Since then, she had not only dropped out of HKU's top 10 popularity charts, but also saw her public profile decline.

Compared to November 2012, when 116 out of 658 respondents named Chan as one of up to 10 lawmakers they could remember, only 33 out of 657 could do the same in October last year - taking Chan from 12th to 21st place in the fame game.

But her star could be rising again, according to HKU's latest poll, held in April after she urged Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying to change his attitude on laws for standard working hours.

Political pundits wondered, however, if Chan's insistence on legislation had backfired and highlighted seeming discord with FTU chairman Stanley Ng Chau-pei, who sits on the Labour Advisory Board.

Time and again, Chan had said it was unacceptable for the board to propose in March - without mandating a figure - that employers must state the number of hours their staff worked in their job contracts. She even suggested Ng's "lack of experience" was to blame for leaving employees vulnerable to exploitation.

Ng spoke up on April 23, indicating he would continue to press the government for a law. "I respect Chan as a senior [unionist] … but I cannot pretend and boast about how shrewd I am [because that is against] my character," he said. "I cannot put up a political show in front of the media to gain exposure by accusing someone of betraying workers."

The two's divergent views were already apparent in March, when Dr David Wong Yau-kar, former Chinese Manufacturers' Association president, was appointed to head the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority. Chan worried Wong would recommend policies favourable to employers, but Ng congratulated the man and said he was not concerned about his business background.

On Friday, Ng told the the pair were not at odds. "My remarks [in April] have been over-interpreted. Chan is very enthusiastic about helping the needy … Her stature and attitude to work are recognised."

Ng also described Chan as one of "the federation's few well-known politicians".

But he declined to comment on whether Chan's plan to step down - putting her super seat with the district councils (second) constituency up for grabs by other political parties - would give the FTU a harder time in retaining its six Legco seats. FTU lawmaker Kwok Wai-keung believed it would make the road ahead tougher for the federation.

A party insider who spoke on condition of anonymity said the FTU's Wong Kwok-hing, of Hong Kong Island constituency, could give Chan's "super seat" a shot, though he must first win a seat in November's district council elections. "You need to be well known to win a 'super seat'. A relatively new person would definitely lose," the insider said.

Chan appeared bent on semi-retirement, though, having become "fed up" with the pan-democrats' filibustering and "non-cooperation movement" in Legco, according to the insider.

"She likes to be in the community meeting people in need, rather than staying in the chamber all the time," the insider said.

Chan Yuen-han

Age 68

Current roles Legislator for district council (second) functional constituency; Wong Tai Sin district councillor; one of two honorary presidents of the Federation of Trade Unions

Past roles Legislator (1995-2008); founding member and then standing committee member (1992-2005) of then Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong (now Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong); Eastern district councillor (1988-1991).

Education Higher diploma in business administration from Polytechnic University and the Business Management Society; Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy