In an email to employees last month, the airline announced that they were replacing a rule that female cabin staff only had to wear high heels when arriving at the airport and walking past passengers waiting to board. The new rule requires the staff to keep high heels on until every passenger is seated on the plane. The Times of Israel reports that over 200 flight attendants have singed a petition against the new directive. The airline had this to say:
“The company updates its service procedures and within that framework it was decided that the stewardesses teams wear presentable shoes also when welcoming customers to flights,” said Yehudit Grisaro, vice president of customer service at EL AL. “Immediately after the seating, and during the entire flight, activities are in work shoes. We stress that this practice is accepted in the world air industry.”
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2 comments
What are the real objections to this requirement? I think it has much more to do with perceived sexism or objectification (if that’s a word) of female FAs rather than health or safety issues. FAs already wear heels in the terminal and while boarding. If there is an emergency at the gate, FAs need only take off their heels if that is restricting their ability to assist passengers. Besides, I would bet that if there was a valid medical reason for not wearing heels, an airline would accommodate that.
Heels definitely produce a sharp and professional appearance even on the oldest FAs . They can help some FAs with getting bags into and closing overhead bins. Ties are uncomfortable and unnecessary for flying an airplane, but pilots wear them for the whole flight merely for the sake of presenting an appealing public image.
Being a flifght attendant is not a easy job but welcoming passengers with the most elegant attitude is a sign of respect.