The fact is that most people know only the rumours about what other workgroups are paid. Yes, at Heathrow, the cabin crew have many inefficient work practices. The same can be said of every workgroup - and I include us pilots in that. However, my personal opinion is that the pilots are one of the most efficient workforces in BA. Then again, I am a pilot, and I only know the rumours I hear of other groups' T's & C's.
Something I know for sure is that BA management love to see us all fighting like this, because they then find it much easier to attack us ALL.
For the most part, I do not begrudge the cabin crew their terms and conditions. I see incredible amounts of enthusiasm from a couple of the crew on almost every trip, and I feel proud to have these individuals working within our company! It is these people that seriously deserve their salaries. However, there are quite a few who feel the world owes them a living, and I do not have time for these people. BA would do better to weed these people out and replace them, than to attack salaries. You have to spend money to make money, but you must get good value for your money. BA does not get good value for money from such people, and neither do our customers. Similarly, if you encourage workgroups to envy/hate each other, and continually erode T's and C's, you will eventually erode good will and enthusiasm. This might not be something that an accountant can quantify, but it actually costs the company a lot of money on a regular basis.
In my opinion, the BIGGEST problem within BA is this:
Each manager has their own budget, and they will do all they can to save money within their own department, even though it is clear that their saving will result in an overall increase in cost for the company as a whole. Sometimes this cost would be clear even to an accountant if they looked properly, but many times it is simply someone's good will removed, and therefore unwillingness to go that extra mile when needed. It all boils down to management bonuses and SEP (Somebody else's problem). I believe this is the single biggest inefficiency that this company has, and I for one find it very frustrating that money is totally wasted in this manner.