Singapore Girl gets to stay in the air longer

The Singapore Girl will not have to clip her wings until she is in her late 40s or early 50s under a new contract scheme. Singapore Airlines (SIA) cabin crew can now fly up to three years more with the airline as compared to the previous scheme.

The Singapore flag carrier and the Singapore Airlines staff union (Siasu) which represents cabin crew arrived at the agreement last Wednesday with the help of intervention by the Manpower Ministry, according to The Straits Times (ST).

It was an "important victory", Siasu president Tony Sim told ST, as the airline and the union have been wrangled in negotiations for more than a year.

Unlike other international carriers which deploy their cabin crew until retirement age, SIA's hiring policy has always geared towards using a younger in-flight crew.

While this gave the airline a competitive edge over rivals in the early days, ST reported that analysts and travellers have weighed in to say that it takes more than just young and attractive crew to keep an airline flying high these days.

Public relations consultant Terence Foo, 42, who travels frequently, told ST: "Good crew are able to anticipate and accommodate passengers' needs, and these skills come with experience."

SOURCE: http://www.relax.com.sg/relax/news/1106200/Singapore_Girl_gets_to_stay_in_the_air_longer.html
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