Labor in the News

LABOR IN THE NEWS

April 13, 2002, 7:27PM

Flight attendants' attention turns to safety

By L.M. SIXEL

In the early days of aviation, flight attendants were nurses, ready to step in if high altitudes sickened passengers. But it didn't take long for medical necessity to take a back seat and for marketing to take over. The stewardessess -- what they were called back then -- had to be single, attractive and thin, fitting the image of glamour and excitement that the airlines skillfully created. By the 1960s, those beautiful flight attendants were hawked like sex symbols. One airline advertised that some lucky man may just find a wife while flying on business. Another featured a flight attendant removing her overcoat and jacket to burlesque music. And Southwest Airlines even argued to a federal judge that it couldn't hire men because its hot pants and go-go-boot-clad female flight attendants were key to attracting male business fliers. While short shorts are history and airlines now advertise their on-time performance, many flight attendants believe they're still too tied to sales and marketing. They want to beef up their safety and security responsibilities, especially in light of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. But so far they haven't had much success. "Service is always first -- that's the unwritten rule," said Brian E. Wozniak, president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local Lodge 2339H. He represents about 4,000 Continental Airlines flight attendants in Houston and about 10,000 nationwide. Flight attendants say airlines have dragged their feet on teaching them how to deal with unruly passengers, ignored the flight attendants' repeated pleas to restrain children under 2 by offering discounted infant seats, and don't regularly solicit their opinions on how to improve safety procedures. That "service first" attitude about flight attendants has done little to change the public's perception that flight attendants are there chiefly to serve drinks and meals. "People still call them stewardesses," Wozniak said. To change that perception, flight attendants believe they need to have a more visible safety role. Pilots have reinforced doors and crash axes in the cockpit. But Continental hasn't provided self-defense training to its flight attendants, even though they're on the front lines. Nor have flight personnel been trained on what to watch for among the passengers, said a flight attendant who has flown with Continental Airlines for more than 15 years. While there have been some procedural changes and extra communication since Sept. 11, it's not real "meat and potatoes," she said, asking not to be identified. And when training is given, it's not very realistic, according to another flight attendant who has been with Continental for more than 10 years. For example, flight attendants are taught to use plastic handcuffs to handle unruly passengers, but they learn to put them on while a person sits still and holds his hands out in front of him. The 15-year veteran flier said many flight attendants like herself have had to devise their own self-defense techniques, such as taking it upon themselves to meet the pilots before takeoff. That way, if there is a problem during the flight, the flight attendants and pilots have at least had a chance to say hello. Wendy Ganse, senior director of in-flight training at Continental Airlines, said she was surprised to hear about the complaints from the union and its members. Anytime the airline has a new initiative, it asks the union for its opinion, she said. And, she added, the union participated in an audit of flight attendant performance about a year ago that focused on whether it was providing enough exit-row information and whether it was doing enough to provide child-restraint seats. The airline also has a 24-hour hot line to report safety problems and other issues, she said, adding that replies are made within 48 hours. One complaint, for example, was that the coffeepot was up too high, making the hot coffee slosh around. Consequently, the airline spend $5 million redesigning the galleys. The airline also took a retired Boeing 737, clipped off its wings and removed its landing gear to provide a realistic flight attendant training site. To simulate turbulence, Continental can make the plane bank 12 degrees to the right and left (that's enough to make it difficult to stand up). It's also outfitted with theatrical smoke so dense it's impossible to see the next seat. And the sound system is so real, you begin to wonder if there's a real fire in the back. Federal air marshals, the Secret Service, the FBI and the Houston Fire Department have used it to practice storming a plane. Flight attendants are taught to be aggressive during evacuation drills -- yell or push, whatever it takes -- to get the "passengers" onto the slide within 90 seconds. They also have to learn first aid, how to handle water emergencies and how to use the emergency equipment on board. But until there's an emergency, passengers don't see that safety training, said Tom Rocha, in-flight training specialist. "It's not learning to say `chicken or beef' in four

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April 13, 2002, 7:27PM

Flight attendants' attention turns to safety

By L.M. SIXEL

languages," he said, referring to the airline's training program. "It's tough training," said Gifford Beuker, supervisor of cabin safety and regulatory compliance. About 15 percent of the flight attendants don't make it through flight attendant training academy. But some flight attendants say the training isn't enough, especially since Sept. 11. If the Federal Aviation Administration didn't require flight attendants for safety reasons, "we would have been replaced by vending machines long ago," said Dawn Deeks, spokeswoman for the Association of Flight Attendants in Washington, D.C. There are still several airlines that classify flight attendants in the marketing category, said Deeks, whose union represents 50,000 flight attendants at 26 airlines. They're not even part of on-board services. The flight attendants have been pushing the airlines and the FAA to provide mandatory training on ways to handle disruptive passengers, she said. And it was only by lobbying Congress through the Airline Security Act that the flight attendants got hijacker training, Deeks said. The airlines didn't want it to be a requirement, so they could keep training costs low. Flight attendants are also concerned that when they see a passenger acting strangely, there's little support when they report it, said the 10-year Continental veteran. The behavior must be reported through a chain of command, but if it turns out to be nothing, it's the flight attendant who takes the blame when the passenger complains, he said. But that still doesn't erase the fact that the situation wasn't fine at the moment, he said, calling their "empowerment" more imagined than real. For their own self-defense, flight attendants today are becoming much more aware of the passengers, said Tom Parsons, chief executive officer of Bestfares.com in Arlington. "They're scrutinizing every Tom, Dick and Harry," Parsons said. "Before, it was, `Who is going to take the cart down this aisle?' " The flight attendants have also been lobbying for professional certification. Pilots and mechanics are certified, Wozniak said, so why aren't flight attendants? He, along with other union officials, believes that the licensing would ensure more training and create more professional expectations. And he'd also like to see flight attendants receive other certification, such as first aid: They get the training, but they aren't trained to the standard of the Red Cross. But Ganse said the flight attendants don't need the certification because a doctor is available by phone if there is a medical emergency on board. It rankles Wozniak that the flight attendants don't have regular meetings with Continental to discuss safety issues. Even aviation safety groups exclude flight attendants, Wozniak said. The government-run Commercial Aviation Safety Team has representatives of the airlines, military, vendors, manufacturers and pilots as members -- but the flight attendants just have an observer role, he said. Admittedly, some things the group discusses don't apply to flight attendants -- like how to prevent flying into a mountain -- but the attendants would have quite a bit to say about issues such as turbulence, he said. And flight attendants have been campaigning for two decades to encourage child safety seats for children under age 2. But the airlines are reluctant to push for restraining infants and toddlers because they don't want parents to get nervous about flying with children on their lap, Wozniak said. Ganse said she has served as the chairwoman of the FAA Aviation Rulemaking Committee on Cabin Safety, which has dealt with the very issue of child safety seats. Many seats were tested, but the dummy infant "died" each time, she said. There have been improvements, the flight attendant unions say. Northwest Airlines recently agreed to provide its flight attendants with self-defense training after members of Teamsters Union Local 2000 conducted a campaign. The union represents more than 50,000 workers at 48 airlines. But more needs to be done, such as getting rid of the aisle-blocking beverage carts. If there's a disturbance in first class, it doesn't matter if two beefy football players in coach want to help if they can't get past the 300-pound cart blocking the aisle, said Terry Trippler, president of TerryTrippler.com, a Minneapolis-based air travel information site. And getting rid of the cart would encourage the flight attendants to talk more to passengers instead of looking over people's heads as they offer glasses of soda, Trippler said. By actually engaging each passenger, a flight attendant can get a better idea of who is on the plane and size up who can help ahead of time, Trippler said. Trippler said a friend of his -- a good-size guy -- and another sitting nearby were quietly asked recently by a flight attendant to help in the event of an emergency. "Now, that was cool," Trippler said. Of course, there could be a problem with deputizing a passenger, he said. The power may go to the passenger's head and he might leap into action to break up a "fight" in the next aisle if some unpleasant words passed between spouses.

April 26, 2002, 1:01AM

Commission cuts medical payments for workers' comp

By R.G. RATCLIFFE

Austin Bureau AUSTIN -- The state Workers' Compensation Commission on Thursday adopted a restrictive medical payment schedule to reduce claims for the care of workers injured on the job. Texas businesses praised the change as a way to deal with quickly rising medical expenses, but the state's doctors and labor unions said the action will harm the medical care of injured workers. The Republican-dominated commission voted 4-2 to adopt a fee schedule beginning in September that will pay doctors at a rate tied into the federal Medicare program. The Texas Association of Business said the action will result in a 20 percent reduction in the cost of workers' compensation medical claims and save businesses money on premiums. "Employers will finally get some relief from the high cost of medicine in workers' compensation," said Bill Hammond, president of the business association. "Because of high fees and overutilization of services, employers in Texas pay much higher rates per medical claim than the national average." But the Texas Medical Association and the Texas AFL-CIO said the fee schedule will push doctors out of the workers' compensation system and make it more difficult for injured workers to obtain health care. "This is a sad day for the injured workers of Texas because today's decision will seriously erode their ability to obtain the medical care they need," said Dr. Fred Merian, president of the Texas Medical Association. Gov. Rick Perry, who already is having political problems with the state's doctors, tried to distance himself from the action. Perry's sole appointee to the commission, Richard Smith, voted against the fee schedule. Perry's chief of staff, Mike McKinney, wrote the commissioners March 27 asking them not to take the vote because it is "premature" and "the impact to injured workers remains unknown." Perry just last weekend lost the Texas Medical Association's endorsement in the governor's race to Democrat Tony Sanchez. The usually Republican-leaning organization has been angry at Perry over his veto last year of a bill that would have required insurance companies to promptly pay doctors for their services. Perry's opponents Thursday wasted no time blaming the governor for the vote. "In Gov. Rick Perry's administration, the needs of injured workers in Texas are taking a back seat to insurance company profits," said Joe Gunn, president of the Texas AFL-CIO. Gunn said the AFL-CIO will challenge the medical fee schedule in court. The medical association's Merian said the commission voted to put Texas under "federal price controls," setting up a system driven by the payments the government sets for Medicare. "This assault might well be the blow that brings medical care for injured workers to its knees," Merian said. The business association's Hammond said the fee schedule brings medical compensation in Texas up to date. "The medical fee guidelines from 1996 overcompensated providers in areas such as physical medicine and surgery in comparison to group health plans and Medicare," Hammond said. He said a Texas medical claim is 80 percent higher than the U.S. average. There were 176,683 injuries reported to the Workers' Compensation Commission in 2001, agency records indicate.