Thanks for your attention and enjoy your flight. Picture: ThinkStock
THIS is an open letter to the public from an Australian flight attendant pleading for respect from passengers who, he says, "almost literally get away with murder" on board planes.
Hi, I'm a flight attendant* and I've had a long history in the customer service industry. From a sunglasses store to a cafe, as a tour guide and now as a flight attendant, I've had my fair share of job experiences over the past 15 years.
When I was growing up I really looked up to the cabin crew. Their warm smiles, attention and general presence made me feel welcome, comfortable and safe in that metal tube 38,000 feet in the air. It's a job I'd wanted to do for a very long time but I hesitated due to the stereotypical perceptions that come along with the role. Yet, eventually, I decided I love planes, I generally like people and I absolutely love travel, so why not?
But being a flight attendant has been the most challenging job I've had by far and there's a huge misconception from the general public as to what the role involves and this ambiguous and mysterious representation leaves us open to a wide interpretation of "expectations" from passengers, so I believe it's time to make some clarifications for the general public and blow away the cloud that covers who we are and what we do.
Having worked as a flight attendant for almost over two-and-a-half years, I feel I'm in a relatively safe position to share this information with the wider public in the hopes they can identify with us and realise what it is we must go through on a daily basis.
There's no other job I've had where my patience has been tested to the limit.
Upon boarding an aircraft we greet you with direct eye contact and even mention your name. In response you shove your ticket in our face and continue walking without a hello, nor even a pause for us to check your flight number. This is a bad start. You'll be surprised with how many people don't recognise our existence. You know, talking to a brick wall has never been fun and you do kind of look stupid, so please give us a simple greeting back.
We don't ask for much.
And you may be surprised to know we're not slaves or servants. I understand culturally people are different and communication levels change based on region, yet I work mainly on domestic routes in Australia and I know how we generally communicate. Clicking your fingers, waving your cup in the air and pulling at my pants when I walk past are all unacceptable ways to get my attention. A press of the call bell is perfectly acceptable or, if I look at you, a simple wave or hand gesture does the trick.
Think I'm being too pedantic? On one flight a passenger put all his rubbish in my pocket then told me to "turn around" so he could stuff my other pocket with rubbish.
In no other industry would I be treated with such contempt and disrespect. I mean when you order food do you pull at someone's clothing? Do you empty rubbish in their pockets? Do you click for attention? When I'm doing my job and giving you an overwing exit briefing must you have your earphones on? Must you roll your eyes at me? It literally takes 30 seconds and I promise I'll leave you alone for the next hour.
When we ask you to turn off electronic equipment people forget that this is expected from us and we must do it – it's part of our job. We do not do it to annoy you, or because we like being yelled at because their phone which is on sleep is apparently "off".
I know if I go to ANY establishment and I'm fully aware people are doing what they are required to do (as part of their standard operation procedures) I respect that and do what I'm told.
But people love to put flight attendants down and call them insulting names such as "Trolley Dolley" and "Waitress in the Sky" - this is all part of the ignorance and misunderstanding of our position. All due respect to waiters and waitresses out there but I've been a waiter before and I was trained within days. However, training to become a flight attendant takes between six-eight weeks of vigorous, intense training.
We're up to our heads in manuals and updates, we're constantly assessed every six months. We must do first aid training, security training, swimming training, be tested on emergency procedures, theory tests, fire drills, water drills, equipment studies and every day before each flight we are asked questions and assessed and much much more. During the training process people are stressed, it ends in tears for some and the amount of time devoted to getting through training is immense - I'm pretty sure I sprouted my first grey hair during the training for my position.
Airport in fog. Picture: Thinkstock
People need to realise we're there for your safety that is our number one priority. Next time you fly, look around you - do you ever think 'what happens if someone gets ill on board?' Do you see any ambulance on board?
Do you ever think 'what happens if someone becomes a threat on board?' Do you see any security on board?
Do you ever think 'what happens if someone loses their mind on board?' Do you see any psychiatrists on board?
Do you ever think 'what do we do if there is an emergency?'
As flight attendants we take on the duty of several roles combined into one - we are the eyes and ears of the aircraft you are on - we are an IMPORTANT part of your flight. Despite filling your bellies we have other roles and responsibilities - most of which we use rarely but are always prepared for. The fact that you don’t see it on that one flight does not mean it doesn't happen.
People also need to understand that our job is not to put up your bags in the overhead locker. Do you think after four flights and lifting and putting down 180 10-kilo bags (per flight) we'd have something that resembled a back left?
Even worse is if we decide to be nice and actually help you and put your bag up or make room for you – do you think we often get a thank you for it? In fact everyday favours we do for guests become nothing more than expectations, so when we DO the guests a favour we do not get a thank you, and when we don’t do it we’re met with angry looks and complaints.
If people only knew what we had to go through and continue to go through to maintain our positions they'd possibly treat us differently. I'm a flight attendant and I love it, I want to be proud of this job. I have seen so much and experienced so much and overall the job is wonderful yet many days you leave home disappointed in people.
In no other position would people tolerate being so disrespected on a daily basis, but we suck it up and try to move on. I just hope the next time you board a flight you have the courtesy to be nice to your flight attendant, and being nice is as simple as saying "hello, goodbye" and understanding what we do and why we are there - which includes but is NOT exclusive to only feeding you.
Thanks for your attention and enjoy your flight.
