Investigators at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration learned the American Airlines punished flight attendants who reported that they became sick due to the toxic fumes, reports Newsweek. The airline also dissuaded their employees from reporting work-related sickness.
The government body has called for the airline to pay $6,837 in liabilities for violating the 1970 Occupational Safety and Health Act. The first investigation began on Aug. 2 when fears were brought to the surface by whistle-blowers. A spokesperson from the Department of Labor told the news outlet,
“all flight attendants/crews were subject to these policies, which led to several complaints of retaliation being filed with OSHA.”
Flight attendants claimed American Airlines docked
“attendance points for complaining about their illnesses and discouraged them from making workplace injury and illness reports,”
according to Newsweek. OSHA Area Director in Fort Worth, Texas, Timothy Minor said,
“Our investigation found that the flight attendants engaged in protected activities when they reported illnesses related to jet fuel fumes seeping into the aircraft cabin.”
Minor revealed that on three different occasions in July and August 2022, employees were penalized by being “charged one or two attendance points” for reporting a sickness “that resulted from a workplace fume event.”
Minor demanded the airline to provide proof of
“appropriate corrective action,”
which can include air sampling tests. The air carrier has 15 days to comply with the demands of the OSHA, propose a meeting with Minor, or
“contest the findings.”
A spokesperson from the Department of Labor revealed that OSHA settled multiple complaints in regards to the reporting of work-related sickness with the company,
“with American Airlines agreeing to fix the problem so that future retaliation for reporting work-related injuries/illnesses did not take place.”
An American Airline spokesperson told the news outlet,
“The safety of our team members and customers is always American’s top priority. We are reviewing the findings of the OSHA investigation.”
#Clique, what are your thoughts?
