TikTok videos of flight attendants twerking aren’t usually my beat, but I find this to be an interesting story, given the repercussions the flight attendant faced. I’m not sure whether to feel slightly bad for the punishment she received, or just amazed at her poor judgment. Thanks to A Fly Guy’s Cabin Crew Lounge for…
Continue reading: Alaska Flight Attendant Fired For Viral Twerking TikTok Video
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Yeah, agreed that all the difference in my sympathies (or lack of) is that she was there for just 6 months.
I'd expect union intervention or something had she been in for years.
If you do it in a uniform that's identifiable as your employer it's always going to be a problem. Someone scrolling could easily mistake that for "official" Alaska post and the company doesn't want that.
It's not offensive.
It's unprofessional.
Grow up.
There's a time and place for everything.
Companies aren't trying to "kill your fun or your vibe". They're trying to maintain their image of professionalism and expect you to do the same on or off the clock.
Doesn’t bother me. I’m not offended. But then again I’m also not her employee (or is that was her employer?) and not my rules.
I’ve had to terminate people for posting picture of themself standing in front of the ticket counter logo sign with their middle fingers out (which funny enough the photo was found by a corporate person traveling who saw this agent messing with their phone and taking selfies during a delay so googled their name and found that photo in seconds). Or the agent who added me on Facebook then ten minutes later posted a video of himself planking on a customers suitcase while riding down the beltloader. Give me a second to grab my radio and come on in….
Perhaps there’s more to the story if she was truly off probation and isn’t Alaska Union (AFA)? Where is their protection? Or as usual is it not as straight forward as the “victim” makes it seem.
She used poor judgment to shoot that video while in her work uniform on a company airplane. Every employer has the right to select employees who exhibit professional professionalism and good judgment which this employee did not. I’ve got no issue with her getting the ax.
There is no "being yourself" when you work for someone else. Either play ball or you're out. Now she has plenty of time to make tictoc videos.
That's a lesson learned that the company policy should be covered. Even if there was no firing, the making of the video did not help the woman. Yes, she can sue but will learn that suing is not an easy route. And, yes, there can be different thresholds for firing for different employees, even those who do the same job and have the same job title.
I heard of a teacher who expelled a student by falsifying a test failure when the student did very well. That is a clearer case of unfairness.
These Millenials/GenZ "influencers" need to take responsibility for their actions - She accepted the company's policies when she got the job, was wearing a company uniform, was on company time, and on company property....lesson learned the hard(er) way. Save your twerking for your own time.
Offensive? Debatable
Cringy and vulgar? Absolutely
I wouldn't want someone wearing my company's uniform while performing vulgar acts and posting it for the world to see. This is entirely different than her going out to a club or whatever, twerking and posting it on her private social accounts... what you do in your free time and keep to yourself/friends shouldn't be any of your employer's business. But the moment she decided to do that in a plane, with a uniform, even if she wasn't actually "working", she dug her own grave. Even if there appears to be no malice behind it, the blame shifting and limited sense of accountability she seems to have, should not warrant a drop of compassion.
AS made the right choice
Clearly discrimination...against whoever they skipped over to hire this person just to check a box.
One cannot wait to read what Eskimo will make of this exhibition.
Expletives might come thick and fast.
As a “Stewardess” who fought the stigma of not being seen as a professional this individual does not deserve to wear the uniform and wings. She is better suited for a career in a strip club. Not on an airplane.
"don’t let the uniform fool you"
^I think that little f u I'll do what I want even in uniform did not help the situation
This feels like a completely fireable offense. Inappropriate behavior in a company uniform in a company facility by someone in a position that makes them the face and representative of the company’s brand. This is not in line with their brand image and frankly feels out of sync with our vibe here in Seattle. Many of us up in here in our corner of the country love Alaska because it’s an escape from the obnoxious riff raff that permeates the experience of flying other carriers.
I am glad she was let go. It’s unbecoming of Alaska’s service excellence. Maybe she can get a job in her class at Spirit.
She wasn't just fired for twerking; she was fired for recording it and posting it. I don't find the dance offensive; I would imagine one of Alaska's concerns is it encourages the sexualization of attendants, and so creates risk for her coworkers who are trapped in a small space with a couple hundred strangers for hours at a time. "Hostile work environment" doesn't even begin to cover it, and the airline made the right call IMO.
She knew what she was doing was against the company's image - she said as much in her "ghetto till I die, don't let the uniform fool you" comment. I wouldn't have to see this kind of thing, because I don't use TikTok. But my algo on other social media sites does occasionally throw stuff like this at me because I frequent travel blogs. And I don't want to see this and it does affect my image if an airline allows it.
You don't have to agree with me, and you can accuse me of "clutching my pearls" if you want, but I'm expressly the kind of customer that the corporation is trying to consider when they make strict social media policies.
But perhaps the biggest issue I have is turning this into a beg for money and playing the victim bs. She knew the policy, she broke it. Stop claiming wrongful termination, learn your lesson, and move on with your life.
"Clearly discrimination...against whoever they skipped over to hire this person just to check a box."
What box is that? Be specific. Be specific and don't be racist. Go on. Try it.
Think of the classy, elegant, intelligent, well spoken black women that fought back in the 60s and 70s to get hired as flight attendants. And then you have this moron that plays right into the stereotype that they fought against. WTF are teaching in public schools today?
Where are all the customers? If you are going out, go out with a bang! One more thing: those cameras in the bathrooms record a lot more!
It reminds me to book a flight on Alaska this year!
If you read his end of the year posts about which articles had the most traffic, they're all stuff like this. I don't begrudge him posting the occasional article like this which will attract viral traffic to keep the roof over his head, and allow him to publish longform trip reports about flying Uzbekitajikikyrgzstan Airlines 🙂
If you read his end of the year posts about which articles had the most traffic, they're all stuff like this. I don't begrudge him posting the occasional article like this which will attract viral traffic to keep the roof over his head, and allow him to publish longform trip reports about flying Uzbekitajikikyrgzstan Airlines 🙂
I work in Human Resources. We would fire her on the spot. You are a company representative. It's not about you when you are on company time. Be an adult. Tough lesson, learn from it.
Sometimes, people need to be taught that there simply exist rules that are to be followed, based on someone else's authority, regardless of whether you personally think they're reasonable or not. If anything right now there is a little *too* much personal opinion that "I can do whatever I want" and just "be myself" in any setting whether appropriate or not.
Etiquette, social respect, and a bit of understated elegance are something that people from lower classes need to be taught. We are not all equal in esteem.
Jeez, tough crowd. That is a least offensive act resulting in a firing I’ve seen in years. Happy girl doing a happy little dance at 6 am, before serving a bunch of grumpy passengers? I’d give her a raise.
I don't think this called for termination. A warning/reprimand would have been enough.
Lingerie and dessert business? Interesting combination for sure.
She's a happy girl and so cute! I would love to fly with her 0600 energy for two hours waiting for pilots and not getting paid. Shame on the person(s) who turned her in to HR.
To be fair, she was not on company time: if boarding had not started, and she had 2 hours to wait for pilots she was not being paid, so was not technically in a relationship of submission to her employer in exchange for remuneration.
However she "owes" the context of the video to the company, without the company she would not have been able to access the empty plane or a uniform. She used the company assets (both physical and brand) for self promotion without obtaining prior consent from the company.
Would a warning have sufficed? Probably. We don't know how "well" she passed her probation period and to which extent Alaska wanted to set an example here. They used their discretionary power here.
AS flight attendants tend to be immature and unprofessional. One of the reasons I stopped flying AS.
Regis,
I must agree.
I've flown AS about forty segments across the last five years with an open mind and looking for that "Best care in the air" that many rave about. I found it on perhaps a quarter of the flights, and about 50/50 on the ground (SEA is good, forget about DFW).
The rest of the time, it was varying degrees if indifference or sometimes even hostility (fuming over contract items in the galley or blocking of the FC lavatory for FC passengers for over half an hour for no apparent reason - seat belt signs off and no one in the lavatory). Had one flight attendant, in uniform, make political comments to boarding passengers who were wearing "her type" of four-word statement.
Sadly, this twerk n' post does not surprise me in the least. Glad AS finally took some action against some employee disgracing their brand.
He doesn't need it. He's basically #1 on SEO for 90% of airline and hotel reviews.
There's something about having class and decorum. And watering down your brand for garbage content like this.
I too stopped going to VFTW to avoid garbage like this. That and Gary’s poorly written articles that seem like Gary writes most of his incoherent articles after one too many PDBs.
She did nothing wrong
Its stupidity of the company
What is very important, is what she does during the flight
Good luck for her in the future
Most airlines have pretty strict social media policies, including unauthorized use of uniform and other company branded items. I've known FAs who have been terminated over much less "sensitive" social media content. If the FAs don't know their companies policies, is that a FA you want operating your flight experience? The FA was fired much more likely because she violated policy than because of the exact content in her video.
poor judgement. Why do it on a company plane in a company uniform? Do you drink in the airport or hotel bar in that uni? It's not the branding and image Alaska has paid millions to have in the consumer's mind.
Good luck in your new gig.
This is a whole lot about nothing.
There was nothing offensive in her expression of happiness.
Alaska airlines overacted in my opinion.
Alaska is brutal on their frontline staff. There is no one in the cabin. Prolly not a good idea to post on TT but what is the harm? This is an awful world we live/work in. Alaska promotes the lazy and the lazy. Good employees seem to fall by the wayside...YMMV xxo
She must file a complaint with
Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC)
Sfo re unlawful termination due to
Discrimination on the basis of her
Color complexion appearance
It is purely a racial discrimination
She must seek help of labor attorney in SF and also lawyer referral svc of
Sf county I can help her
"something that people from lower classes need to be taught"
Wow... I'm speechless.
I don't see any passengers around. If it is an issue for Alaska I think a reprimand would be enough
I'm not talking about race, lest you think I'm being racist. I'm talking about class. And knowing how to behave properly in public or at work. Some people need to be taught that.
If she acts like that at work in uniform just imagine what she'll do to you on the drive home after a few tequila shots in the bar.
You'd need to see Alaska's personnel records to determine if others who behaved in a similar way were also terminated. Only then can you determine if this was actually discrimination. Based on the video there's no way to determine that discrimination was involved.
Ghetto "Taking pride in being ignorant and ill-informed, and demeaning or bringing down those who are excelling in their education"
Very fair and balanced views Ben. Wish more people were like you! I do also feel slightly bad for her but I feel that she hasn't done herself any favours by pursuing the 'discrimination' agenda. It's quite disrespectful and juvenile I feel. What a sad, regretful overall episode.
She could go to work for Southworst or Frontier . . . . probably more her style.
She is also not uniform compliant in this video. In itself, this would be small. But it was not the only incident. Also she was on probation which means that she’s not fully an employee, not covered by union until she passes probationary period.
Promote her to management she couldn't do any worse than Alaska is doing now
Where was her pole?
In a country where personal responsibility has gone out the window, this was just a bad decision that had repercussions of which she was well aware.
The article also fails to mention that she has a union (AFA) which could have stood up for her if they felt she had any grounds for fighting the termination. If the union isn't stepping up, it's because they know they can't help her. It really is that simple.
We also don't know whether she had previously been talked to by management for other issues or even similar ones. There's just not enough context to fully know what happened here, which is also a big issue today with online claims like this one.
Ultimately, each person gets to decide whether to learn from their mistakes. Some choose to shift blame and use excuses or play the victim (very hot right now), and others self-reflect, suck it up and don't repeat that mistake at their next job. Only she can decide what her future will be based on which path she chooses after this incident.
The problem isn't about being yourself.. The problem is the message that she is sending out.
Some may see it innocent enough and think good for you..
What about the ones seeing this and expecting a lap dance or twerk from other flight attendants.
So sorry yet in that uniform and airline you are misrepresenting everyone.. You haven't left the ghetto or the ghetto you.. What an opportunity you blew to show young women how to rise above (literally)
If Alaska fired her for this video, they need to get a life. The video wasn’t offensive at all (and if you find it offensive maybe loosen the grip on your pearls), and she wasn’t on the clock when it was filmed. Sure she wasn’t in uniform on the plane, but it was fine and probably only generated positive or neutral attention to Alaska from those who came across it on TikTok.
Because I find it hard to believe Alaska would have fired this FA for something as tame as this video, and the fact that it came out right after her probation period, I have to imagine she was fired for either bad performance or Alaska just trying to cut back on employees before bonus time. Alaska firing her for this video would be absurd.
she can twerk all she want,,, just dont do it at her work place in her work uniform during work hours
I don't thnk it was poor judgement - she was just having fun and it isn't the least bit offensive. Alaska needs to get over themselves, if anything a happy employee having fun on one of their planes is positive PR!
She was just having a little fun. What’s the difference between a girl dancing before her shift to have fun and some of these other flight attendants you see on the PA saying all sorts of ridiculous things to the passengers?! Everyone wants to have a little fun at work in their down time. It helps to pass the day. Who cares!??! Everyone is so sensitive these days. It’s not like she was doing it in front of the passengers. She should not have been fired over that.
I like it when my surgeon does a little twerk to post on his TikTok before my procedure, also am in favor of our local cops showing a little booty shake before they go taking down some drug dealers. Also my boss does that before telling us what to do for the day, and the waitress did it just before bringing us our lunches.
It's about respect and respectability, you moron.
Totally unprofessional and she should know that she represents a company/brand. Anything you do in company uniform or on its facilities should not violate the company’s media or social media policies. It’s part of the handbook and you represent thousands of hardworking team members when you do something on company time. If you sort of feel it’s a bad idea, usually it’s a really bad idea.
Definitely unprofessional but wouldn’t mind seeing this on my next Alaska flight
It’s about visibility and impact on the brand. If this was shared privately with friends or didn’t go viral, the FA wouldn’t have been fired
What I find interesting is that these types of cases tend to only happen in the US. We don't see them happening elsewhere. Furthermore, I think the policies of the airlines should be general as they are yet also specific to include some common examples.
Don't want Alaska Airlines to become another Southwest. Your discrimination lawsuit will fail.
She screwed up and was unprofessional, and paid the price. Simple as that. They go through a lot of training to become a flight attendant, and for sure what she did has to be part of that. Maybe she should have been given a severe reprimand and given another chance, but basically she screwed up. End of story.