A now-fired 
Delta Air Lines
flight attendant who had worked at the carrier’s Seattle base has alleged that the airline not only retaliated against him for his pro-union position but also because he had raised issues about potential cases of sexual harassment from a colleague.
Retaliating for a pro-union stance
The plaintiff, a now-former Delta Air Lines cabin crew member who joined the airline once he completed his training in June 2023 and was fired in August 2024, filed the lawsuit against the carrier at the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington on September 27.
While Delta Air Lines is based in Atlanta, Georgia, and legally incorporated at a post office box in Delaware, the plaintiff’s lawyers argued that the court may exercise personal jurisdiction over the airline, which maintains substantial operations at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
(SEA).
“Delta’s contacts within this district are sufficiently continuous and systematic as to render it at home within this judicial district. Additionally, the claims at issue here arise substantially from Delta’s activities that occurred within this judicial district.”
Furthermore, the plaintiff, while being an Arizona resident, was based in Seattle during his time of employment with the carrier.
According to the court filing, around 80% of Delta Air Lines employees are not unionized, with one of its unionized groups being its pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) Delta Master Executive Council (MEC).
Photo: Ian Dewar Photography | Shutterstock
“Delta works hard – and devotes substantial resources – to keep its flight attendants, and other employees, non-union.”
The lawyers said that previous campaigns by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
(AFA) to unionize the airline’s flight attendants were actively opposed by the carrier. Delta Air Lines has maintained an Employee Involvement Group (EIG), as well as an anti-union campaign called ‘One Future One Delta.’
Those anti-union measures have stayed at the airline despite US lawmakers’ calls for a neutral position in their letter sent in May, the lawsuit pointed out.
The plaintiff flight attendant was one of the “casualties of Delta’s anti-union campaign,” the lawsuit read, adding that during training, flight attendants were subjected to mandatory meetings where Delta Air Lines officials and agents had made “false, misleading, and coercive statements about AFA and otherwise spouted anti-union views.”
According to AFA, while there are 100 million reasons why the airline does not want its flight attendants to unionize, one of them is that it paid “$100 million per year less than United for Flight Attendant costs like pay, benefits, profit sharing, and working conditions.”
Related
Some Delta Air Lines Flight Attendants Want Their Own Union
Delta Air Lines’ flight attendants are attempting to unionize – and the airline is responding.
Harassed by a management-favored flight attendant
In addition to the retaliation allegations, the plaintiff alleged that another flight attendant, with the lawsuit saying that although the flight attendant was purportedly a rank and file employee, “[they] appeared to be speaking with authority Delta had cloaked [them] in, as only a select number of flight attendants, such as […], were given the opportunity to address the training class graduates.”
“During a practice for the graduation ceremony, [the flight attendant] performed a uniform inspection on [plaintiff]. During that inspection, [the flight attendant] engaged in non-consensual, sexually assaultive touching of [the plaintiff] with [the flight attendant’s] hands reaching inside [the plaintiff’s] pants close to his genitals and then moving to underneath [the plaintiff’s] vest and against [the plaintiff’s] chest.”
Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying
During the same training session, the flight attendant allegedly also engaged in sexual harassment of another male trainee, who told the plaintiff about the experience shortly after. The plaintiff discussed this with another flight attendant, who also observed the alleged harasser’s actions.
“On information and belief, several male flight attendants have experienced similar treatment at the hands of [the alleged harasser].”
The lawsuit highlighted that the plaintiff did not immediately report the sexual harassment because the alleged offender was potentially favored by the airline’s management and had certain managerial rights, including recruiting flight attendants for Delta Air Lines’ safety videos.
Related
How Have Airline Safety Videos Changed Over The Years?
After the first “viral” safety video, airlines have got creative in making videos of such kind.
Separate investigations
Eventually, the airline suspended the plaintiff for their posts on social media as well as on Delta Air Lines’ internal communication channels, which expressed their pro-union views and opposed the sexual harassment by the alleged offender.
On May 17, two of the carrier’s managers met with the plaintiff, during which the latter reiterated their concerns about Delta Air Lines’ executives and management sweeping concerns about wages and working conditions under the rug.
The plaintiff admitted to the two managers that he has made social media posts and/or comments expressing their views about working at Delta Air Lines, for which the two managers suspended the plaintiff without pay.
Photo: KITTIKUN YOKSAP | Shutterstock
“[A Delta Air Lines manager] also assured [the plaintiff] that the two investigations—Delta’s investigation into [the plaintiff’s] posts and into his report of [the flight attendant’s] sexual harassment—would be treated separately.”
While there were plans for a follow-up meeting to discuss the sexual harassment incident, the two managers never scheduled a meeting, and instead, the plaintiff was suspended without pay on June 6.
On August 16, Delta Air Lines fired the plaintiff. The lawsuit stated that the airline never provided any explanations for the suspension and firing “other than its intolerance for his pro-union, anti-sexual harassment posts.”
Lawyers representing the plaintiff have asked the court to reinstate them, pay any earnings that he would have received if not for the airline’s unlawful conduct, pay compensation for past and future losses stemming from the unlawful conduct, cover any non-pecuniary losses, and pay punitive damages.
Related
Delta Passengers Sue For Refunds Of Flights Cancelled During CrowdStrike IT Fail
The passengers filed a lawsuit in Atlanta, where Delta Air Lines’ headquarters are located.