Flight attendants file suit for safer work conditions
The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) Monday filed a complaint in District Court against Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Marion Blakely for their failure to ensure the health and safety of flight attendants and other employees working in the airline industry.
Flight attendants encounter a wide variety of occupational hazards while working aboard commercial flights including turbulence, severe changes in cabin air pressure, unwieldy service carts, exposure to toxic chemicals, unruly and sick passengers, threats of terrorism and emergency evacuations. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics, flight attendants suffer injuries and illnesses four times more frequently than workers in private industry and more than twice as often as those in construction.