THE dispute between Cathay Pacific and its flight attendants has marked a change in the cabin crew union's attitude, with one senior purser becoming the public face of the Flight Attendants' Union.
Miss Rachel Varghese has been catapulted from the relative obscurity of the union to become the official spokeswoman for the striking workforce, whose week-long stoppage has cost Cathay an estimated $105 million.
In previous disputes with the company, the union has rarely spoken to the press. The union's chairman, Mr David Ngan, has been particularly elusive.
But the strike has seen a major policy shift with Singapore-born Miss Varghese fielding questions from the local and international media for the last seven days.
''The union has in the past taken the view that talking to the press would not help in our negotiations with the company,'' Miss Varghese, 33, said.
''We didn't want to wash our dirty linen in public. But Rod Eddington [Cathay's managing director] started to do just that.'' Mr Eddington has repeatedly vowed that any cabin staff who the company claims have been clearly active in the strike will face disciplinary action and possibly dismissal. The union's executive committee and Miss Varghese are prime candidates for any action.
''That doesn't scare us,'' she said.
