Sharp post,
PAXboy ...
Professionals ... CC are
not according to
Wiki
A professional is a member of a vocation founded upon specialised educational training.
The word professional traditionally means a person who has obtained a degree in a professional field. The term professional is used more generally to denote a white collar working person, or a person who performs commercially in a field typically reserved for hobbyists or amateurs.
So perhaps they are the '
bourgeoisie' these days?
Another Wiki
Marxism defines the bourgeoisie as the social class that owns the means of production in a capitalist society. Marxism views the group as emerging from the wealthy urban classes in pre- and early capitalist societies.
Ahhh ... are they 'working class'?
Last Wiki
Working class is a term used in academic sociology and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs, as measured by skill, education and lower incomes.
The sadness of all of this farce is 'perception'.
One upon a distant, CC were there to provide a service to the higher social class who could actually afford to buy an air ticket. They were, dare I say it, flying waitresses. As time went on, safety aspects were introduced, and salaries were increased. The BOAC steward[ess] acquired some form of status [self-perceived?].
They moved from being 'working class' to 'bourgeoisie', seamlessly and with a perception of a higher status in society, reinforced by ever-higher salaries, allowances, and benefits. But perhaps they never forgot their roots.
"Petty bourgeoisie" sums it up perfectly. I have absolutely NO quarrel with the perception of what CC do, and the vast majority do it well. They lie on the borders of 'definitions' - at one hand vital safety components, at another simply servants of the travelling public. Sadly, over the last few decades, self-importance in some quarters has overtaken the reality of what is actually involved in the daily task.