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18 May, 2018

Shocking: More than two thirds of flight attendants say they’ve been sexually harassed

Cabin aisle in airplane with rows of seats and passengers.

By Alexandra Coulton

A US study has uncovered some shocking findings about how airline passengers are treating flight attendants.

According to a report by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), more than two-thirds of flight attendants in the US said they have experienced verbal or physical sexual harassment during their flying careers.

More than one-in-three said they experienced verbal sexual harassment from passengers and nearly one-in-five experienced physical sexual harassment in last year alone.

While the study was carried out in the US, the results speak of a more widespread phenomenon due to the global nature of the airline industry.

In a statement, the AFA said despite the prevalence of abuse and the emergence of the #MeToo movement, 68 per cent of flight attendants say they saw no efforts by airlines to address workplace sexual harassment over the last year.

“While much of the coverage of the #MeToo movement has focused on high-profile cases in the entertainment industry and politics, this survey underscores why AFA has long been pushing to eradicate sexism and harassment within our own industry,” Sara Nelson, AFA President, said in a statement.

“Flight attendants are first responders. Their authority when responding to emergencies is undermined when they are belittled and harassed.”

“Likewise, harassment makes it more difficult for flight attendants to intervene when passengers are harassed by other passengers. Flight attendants must be confident that airline executives will back them up when they respond to and report harassment of crew and passengers.”

The AFA said they are calling on the entire airline industry to step up and combat harassment and recognise the impact it has on safety.

They are also calling on the flying public to take part in demanding an environment that provides flight attendants with the respect and dignity they need to do their jobs, protect passengers, and serve as aviation’s first responders.

Flight attendants describe the verbal sexual harassment as comments that are “nasty, unwanted, lewd, crude, inappropriate, uncomfortable, sexual, suggestive, and dirty.” They also report being subjected to passengers’ explicit sexual fantasies, propositions, request for sexual “favors” and pornographic videos and pictures.

The most common response to passenger verbal harassment, by order of frequency, are to avoid further interaction with the passenger, ignore the harassment, or diffuse/deflect the situation.

The physical sexual harassment included having breasts, buttocks and crotch area “touched, felt, pulled, grabbed, groped, slapped, rubbed, and fondled” both on top of and under their uniforms. Other abuse included passengers cornering or lunging at them followed by unwanted hugs, kisses and humping.

Perhaps the most alarming finding of the study is that only seven per cent of attendants who experienced abuse have reported sexual harassment to their employer.

Do you have something to say on this? Get in touch with Travel Weekly Editor Ali Coulton here to share your thoughts.

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flight attendants sexual assault sexual harassment