I do not know what the pay and general conditions for BA cabin crew actually are and Im sure that they have some valid grievances - however, I do know this much having travelled as a passenger with BA on a wide variety of routes and also with low-cost and charter airlines. The hardest working cabin crews I have ever seen are those employed by UK holiday charter airlines - without question. The slackest are those utilised by some, repeat some, low cost carriers. BA seem to fall somewhere in the middle where passenger service varies between the exceptional to the indifferent.
As far as 'sickness' is concerned - all airlines seem to suffer from the same problem. They preach the fact that crews should never operate when unwell but at the same time seem to keep a running score as to those who get more 'colds' than others. It can go to the extreme - I have known crew being summoned into their managers office to explain their abscences when they have had major surgery ! Yes, we all know that some tend to go sick for the weekend - it happens throughout the industry and beyond - this should not condone however the bullying attitude that some cabin crew managers try and take towards their staff.
I would imagine that most non-BA cabin crew in the UK would look at their colleagues in BA with envy - justified, you tell me ?