Originally Posted by
WorldTraveler
Are they a little cranky? Yeah, can be, although most people in the industry deserve to be.
I'll be the first to admit that physical attractiveness and fitness isn't the highest criteria in the FA hiring profile. But have you looked at your seat mates lately? In the past month, I've flown with pilots with bad joints, organ transplants, morbidly obese and hearing aids.
Are the girls at TAM, Virgin, Singapore, etc nicer to look at? Yeah. But here is the reality: In the United States, our laws and our principles around civil rights value these people even though they may not meet our cosmetic standards. So, just like the 55 year old pilot I fly with who has various ailments, these people are our colleagues, they are trained professionals and as we saw with USAirway in the Hudson, I'd trust them with my life, no questions asked. As such, they deserve our respect.
Sorry to hear you that you "cringe" in sympathy when other people show how shallow it is that they are.
Outstanding post! 85% load factors, compressed turn times, and FAA minimum staffing all contribute to a far different job than just a few years ago. Throw in terminated or frozen pensions, paycuts, hostile management and insufficient tools to do the customer service part of the job, it's no wonder some are cranky.