United Airlines sacked six senior flight attendants for what it claims was the bullying of a junior flight attendant. These six flight attendants have now sued United, claiming that long-established disciplinary protocols were not followed and that age discrimination is the true culprit for their job termination.
Age Discrimination Or Bullying? Lawsuit Pits United Airlines Against Six Senior Flight Attendants
A group of about 50 Newark-based flight attendants were part of a WhatsApp group. The group was only open to pursers. On March 6, 2021, the conversation turned to one particular junior flight attendant, who had made it a practice to photograph flight attendants who were not wearing their masks and then post it on Facebook.
Some nasty things were said.
Someone in the WhatsApp group breached the agreement not to share conversations outside the group and sent screenshots to United. United responded by investigating then firing six of the flight attendants for bullying, harassment, and retaliation.
Now these six flight attendants are suing for their jobs back. They claim that United ignored its “progressive discipline” system and fired them for a first offense that a junior flight attendant would not have been fired for. The lawsuit contends:
“Plaintiffs’ age was a motivating factor in United’s actions. But for their age, plaintiffs would not have been terminated from their employment or received undue harsh discipline.”
United Airlines told Paddle Your Own Kanoo:
“United Airlines has zero tolerance for bullying or harassment in the workplace and we intend to vigorously defend our position.”
My Thoughts On The Case
While it is too early to tell who is right or wrong, I have a few thoughts about the case:
- United should have a right to fire instantly any flight attendant who bullies a colleague
- I hated wearing a mask too, but United had a right to require its flight attendants to wear one, regardless of whether a federal mask mandate was in effect at the time
- If United treated similar cases in different ways based upon the age or longevity of a flight attendant, then United loses the case (and should lose the case)
That last point is key. Will these flight attendants be able to prove that United singled them out for punishment because of their age? Was this part of a grand conspiracy to cull older flight attendants to reduce payroll costs?
I don’t know. Could be. Targeting older flight attendants with stricter application of the same rule is not okay.
CONCLUSION
Six United flight attendants are suing United, claiming they were terminated based upon their age, not their alleged bullying. While United generally does not comment on pending litigation, here it defends its decision and says it will vigorously defend it in court. The key to the case will be whether United treated flight attendants the same who were accused of bullying or whether these particular flight attendants were treated differently, ostensibly due to their age.
Of course you would defend the little narc twat fa. Little chit deserved to be bullied for photographing other emplyees. Clearly if anyone was “bullying,” it was them for taking unwanted pictures of others.
Unwanted pictures taken of employees not following orders, but in forcing orders on passengers, as its a Federal Order. Can’t have it both ways, just because your Father is Orville Wright. Some FA become arrogant snobs and power trippers. These types are no longer in the job for pax safety and service. They’re in it for the high senior flight pay and layover.. gets them out of the house a couple days a week.
Glad they fired them. I don’t want to rip them all because I’ve had some really good ones, but some of the senior Newark flight attendants just suck, and it’s great to see they aren’t afraid to terminate them.
united sucks, both old hags and the annoying little provax twat narc kid
I’m not sure what the “bullying” was but it appears both sides are to blame. I don’t much like any of them, based on the information provided.
I recently was in first on a United flight out of Denver and watched a senior FA repeatedly demean a junior FA. She seemed to enjoy it and it got to the point she was showing off for some of us. I made sure to tell the young FA thank you and “nice job” when I deplaned. I hope that courtesy didn’t make it worse for her.
So let me get this straight…the junior snitch FA was taking unwanted pictures AND posting them on Facebook? She should be fired for harassing and bullying her peers.
Said flight attendant was later promoted into a supervisor role with United… after snitching on colleagues.
Let’s also be clear, the pictures were taken coming off of break and when a flight attendant was lowering his mask to have a sip to drink. Unfortunate.
In light of real science confirming that masks are useless against The ‘Rona, United should be ashamed of discipline against any employee or former customer who violated their “policy.”
And as for the rat…he sounds like the ideal Comrade.
Sounds like some serious reading comprehension issues if that is what you took away from the study. Masks unquestionably add protection.
With all the corporate VPs at United, surprising they never directly spoke about bullying and harassment, at any level. It is cringe worthy to hear how senior FAs, believing their union status somehow protects them, can act out in such a pathetic manner. As for the newbie FA, Stasi does not run United.
The senior FAs were correctly terminated, as harassment and bullying is not just by race, religion, gender, etc; but also certainly by age, in either direction. The junior FA should be counseled and written up to substantiate how we do not live in a Stalinist society where ratting out others is encouraged.
All I can think when reading this is how crappy it must be to be a FA. You’ve got senior team members violating policy left and right, but too cowardly to stick up to management about their own actions. Meanwhile who-knows-who of your co-workers is taking cell phone pics to rat you out. And this… this is the friendly fire… the other side of it is the passengers getting drunk and pissing on people, or fighting, or trying to open doors in flight, being criticized from every angle… what’s a worse job? being a police officer I suppose…
Er…interesting how the Co. blithely turns a blind eye to snarky, demeaning, sh*tty, ageist remarks frequently & openly directed at mid-level to Sr-level FA’s from Jr FA’s, all. the. time.
(Mostly heard from the ‘Smisek Team’ era hires, ‘11 to ‘17-ish)
Where’s that ‘zero-tolerance’ policy?
#whattaload
I thought not wearing a mask on a plane was equivalent to assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder.
Who started this crap? Clearly the snitch. Probably a non-binary Bernie voter.
Another sad and pathetic example of just how toxic the culture is at UA. UA made it clear at their “backstage ra ra ” party a few years ago that this was now a young airline and there was no place for loyal senior flight attendants. They are happy to tout how the new young crew members are the way forward…you know the ones with their airpods in watching You Tube videos in the galley while you need assistance…the same ones that comment “it’s not my job” when asked to go over and above. The same ones who think nothing taking pics of crew and turning them into the company…no regard whatsoever given to the circumstances.
The steps of discipline have vanished since covid and the company takes great pleasure in their firing practices. I was told in confidentiality from a senior manager a few years ago “We are sick of whiny flight attendants we are gonna start firing them left n right that will shut them up”
What you have now is a culture of “them” and “us” and with 25000plus flight attendants this makes for a very disjointed and incohesive crew.
Look back at the Cal culture and the United and tell me which one was happier..who had the better reputation.
United’s flight attendants are protected by a collective bargaining agreement that is negotiated under the auspices of the Railway Labor Act, which covers airlines and railroads. Due Process is a central tenet of the RLA. That Due Process demands that no employee in a bargaining unit may be disciplined unless there is clear and convincing evidence of a violation of a company policy, and that the employee be offered an opportunity to rebut the allegations.
Thomas Frederick, Master of Legal Studies in Labor and Employment Law
I don’t think we have any reason to conclude, at least now, that this did not occur. These flight attendants still claim it was simply ageism.
SO MR KLINT, IF THEY WERE OFFERED A STEP DISAPLINE OUTCOME FOR THIS SKETCHY HARSMENT THEY WOULDN’T HAVE JUMP RIGHT TO FINAL TERMINATION..TRUST ME UNITED AIRLINES DOESNT ADHEAR OR GO BY THE UNION CONTRACTS IT SIGNS AS WELL AS THE STRONG UNIONS THAT ARE THERE..THE ACCUSATIONS OF BULLYING ARE WEAK..THEY LOSE IN ARBITRATION.
Bullying is purely a matter of perspective.
The junior flight attendant “bullied” her co-workers by photographing them with intent to shame or force their dismissal. Then management bullied the bullies who were bullied for bullying.
The definition of being “bullied” is now so broad that virtually anything applies so long as someone can claim they feel bullied. If something is based only on feelings and not actual harm then there is no standard to apply since we all have different feelings and perceptions.
Welcome to flying in 2023. I’ve been flying as a flight attendant for close to 3 decades — most of us do not trust these new-hires. Gone is the camaraderie that existed between crews. Some of us have given over half of our lives to the company, consistently going above and beyond, regardless of our age.. and it can all be taken away in a second because some zoomer thinks that getting others fired is going to be their climb to the top. News flash, kids, your climb to the top, in the flight attendant position, is to stick with the company for 13 years and hit top scale pay. Getting others fired does nothing except destroy your name, and word travels fast around the system about who you are and what you did.
Some of these flight attendants are still flying, well into their older age, to take care of their disabled adult children, their spouse with cancer, or working to save up a bit more into their 401k after they had to sacrifice their pensions to save the company. What the new hires are doing is nothing short of sociopathic, completely devoid of empathy: there is almost nothing serious enough to warrant going to management on another flight attendant. I can think of only 2 things: sexual harassment, and physical abuse. Then yes, by all means – get them canned. But if a flight attendant got a bit complacent? Maybe did something that’s not to standard, that’s making you uncomfortable? Maybe they got an attitude with you? Then contact the union’s professional standards, where the union will pull that flight attendant aside, give them a chance at redemption, and set them straight – without risking their life’s work going down the drain. Do you see the senior flight attendants taking pictures of your lazy butts as soon as you sit down after the service, throw your AirPods in your ear, watch a movie, and crack open a snack box that you didn’t pay for? No. Because we understand that while we’re on that trip, away from home, we are each other’s only semblance of family up in the air who may share last moments of life together should something go horribly wrong. We are supposed to be there for each other and help one another out… this new trend of proud rats is troubling. We always had a few rats throughout the years, true, but we all knew their names and steered clear of them. These new kids wear it like a badge of honor. Sad, really.
You sound like a butt hurt senior flight attendant lol. All you senior flight attendants do is pick on the new, fresh, younger flight attendants to boost your egos. Jealous boomers.
Wow, nice way to judge all of us “seniors.” Personally, I enjoy flying with new hires. And, pssst ! Many new hires are ‘boomers’ enjoying a second/post retirement career. So there’s that…..
Wow! You couldn’t say it better!
Well said Trina, trust me these “rats ” only exist because of management and HR allowing and even encouraging the practice of switching behind others back…there’s nothing worst in my opinion than smiling to your face but than stabbing you once out of site..hope these 6 legacy FA win in federal arbitration or court.
AMEN!
Tomato
Senior Mamas have been known to bully Junior FAs since the dawn of time so that part isn’t really a surprise. Senior Mamas should have just reported her for taking pix and posting them and the Junior FA should have reported the anti- masters to both the Union and Company at the time. Everyone knows those Pursers who are on a power trip… “not on MY plane”, “well I’m in charge today…”. Age is definitely not a factor in firing them, seniority maybe. There are “Junior FAs” in their 60’s.
United is in (has been in) contract negotiations with its flight attendants for years now. Does anyone out there think the us against them, the you against me, the senior against junior stuff happening at United is accidental?
Yes? Great! I have a bridge to sell you.
If no, then good for you for re of izung union busting when you see it in one of its most obvious forms.
I hope the United flight attendants will see through this nonsense being perpetrated by their company and band together. I know the senior ones have been through something similar many times before.
Hey hurt Junior butt flight attendant. How long you been flying? Are you one that was hired in as a flight attendant supervisor with no flying experience or promoted to f/a supervisor in your first year? lol
Probably 20k of the 26k f/a know of this guy. He has made a name for himself alright & not in a good way. He was promoted to a supervisor & got removed after about 3mo – unknown reason. Now he’s promoted to an intl Purser. No one wants to work with him. Company won’t touch him- he sits in pax seats after service & watches movies. (allegedly)
He was also (per Google) on a very famous singing show & was accused of getting a contestant kicked off the show. So he apparently has some type of agenda with people & places he is at.
Perhaps you & others should ask (q’s to seniors) & talk about best way to do things, or if you should be doing something or suggest new ideas, what was it like to fly ‘back in the day”, – the stories are great. All the laziness & attitude with a lot (not all) junior fa’ s is pathetic. Texting the entire flight? Can’t come out of the galley or pick up trash? Some can’t even smile.
There’s a lot to this story that has been misconstrued over the last couple of years. The FA who initially reported the flight attendants didn’t post anything on Facebook; the photos were given directly to the company. Facebook wasn’t involved in this case in any way. In any case, United has always had strict rules about harassing coworkers, even if he or she happens to be a “snitch”, and writing toxic things in a chat room is harassment. United is just following its own policy that has been in place for years. The fired FAs won’t be coming back any time soon.
Oscar the former chair and ceo of united was on flights with no mask. it was required that all employees and customers were to wear mask. yet he did not. photos of him not wearing a mask on a plane are all over the internet. Yet nothing happens to him. while all other employees were put on termination, or lost flight benefits if they were retired. so united does have a double standard.
Matt, can you remember how great Continental Airlines was? Continental Airlines got into a marriage with a communicable disease.
I fondly remember the wonderful catering on Continental, which I greatly miss.
Oh my Gosh…. I’m senior …. Well getting older and more junior…. I love fresh faces and teaching them… on the plane and off…. I wasn’t always welcomed either when I started fresh… hers the thing when I started we respected the seniority. The seniors we also not bullies. I always looked forward to being senior and earning the same benefits. I was “B” scale… first year they started this. It never should have been allowed period. As my career progressed I saw more and more of those nice senior benefits disappear. Like my pension for one…. Lost of a lot of vacation. …. Having to pay for medical and the premiums keep rising…. Guys this is all money out of our ost checks. If you keep stabbing seniors in the back it destroys solidarity. United loves all of these fights. Seniors Will retire one day… when you get senior yourself hope that you’ll have half the benefits they have now, because I watched mine all go down the drain… every contract. Solidarity folks. Hold her heads up you’ll be there one day. If you fight against what the seniors have then by the time you get there it will be all gone… I’m a witness. Do your time you’ll get there. Stay in solidarity. I fo boy approve of seniors being lazy, mean no more liking their jobs. Just quit. I get angry also about what’s going on and what we deserve. We are treated like crap compared to the pilots. We will not maintain a thjng or get anything better with the in fighting so stop that. Go go have fun and make some money while we are at it!!!! You don’t even have to figure out what to wear!!!!! Luv y’all. .