Whilst I am of the opinion that the cabin crew should have done the flight, and this has been a breakdown in CRM, I think the incident is indicative of the general feeling of SAA cabin crew towards their employer.
Unlike the flight deck crew that are well looked after, the cabin crew do not feel as though the company cares at all about them. Cabin crew cannot even bid for one day off a month! How do you plan a life, attend your sister's wedding, etc? I heard today that cabin crew are being rostered for 4 leg JNB-CPT flights again! What type of service are they going to provide to the public when they have been on their feet for 4 Cape Town legs. The Washington pairing is known to be a problem for flight and duty. If you take sign on 1 hour before, and sign off 30 min afterwards, I have been told the pairing actually involves going into discretion already if leaving on time!
From the operations manual,
"An Aircraft Commander may, at his discretion, in consultation with his crew, extend a FDP beyond the maximum normally permitted provided he is satisfied that the flight can safely be made. In these circumstances the maximum normally permitted shall be calculated according to what actually happens, not on what was planned to happen."
What will be interesting to see with this case is, what happens if the "in consultation" part results in the cabin crew wanting to get off, and the PIC deems it worth carrying on, is it then a case of insubordination if they do? The operations manual doesn't say that mutual agreement must be reached, it only mentions that he must consult.