The Australian Dominique Elissa, 31 years old, said she asked for help putting her carry-on in the overhead bin because she had previously injured herself lifting a suitcase.
“I’m pregnant. I’d really appreciate your help because I injured myself last time”, she recalled telling the flight attendant.
According to her account, the worker replied: “If you can’t lift your suitcase above your head, you have to check it”.
“I was shocked”, the influencer admitted, saying she felt there was a lack of consideration for pregnant women.
Finally, another passenger offered to help her.
But the controversy took a different turn when several flight attendants defended the worker.
They explained that some airlines prohibit them from lifting passengers’ luggage to prevent workplace injuries.
One worker added that, in her case, during boarding, they are not yet officially on paid time, so an injury might not be covered by workers’ compensation.
“We are not allowed to put passengers’ bags in the overhead bins for workplace health and safety reasons”, another flight attendant explained.
Although policies vary between airlines, the comments changed the debate: what the influencer interpreted as a lack of empathy could also be due to measures intended to protect workers.