2 sexual assaults and Westjet is covering for him? Concerned over his privacy? As great as it is to see an airline stand up for its pilots, c'mon kick this guy to the curb.
Pilot M invited her and the rest of his flight crew back to his room for drinks during a layover in Maui, Hawaii, in January, 2010. Team spirit is promoted by the company, the court document says, and “as part of that team spirit, socializing on layovers is common and encouraged by WestJet and this often involves alcohol.”
When all other members of the crew had retired for the night, the court document says, the pilot suggested sex and, when Ms. Lewis tried to leave, he threw her onto the bed, kissed her and groped her between the legs. She managed to push him off, then fled the room.
The document says Ms. Lewis reported the assault to another member of the crew the following day and to her WestJet manager upon her return to Canada. She also lodged a complaint with the RCMP, who contacted the police in Maui. But the pilot could not be arrested unless he returned to Hawaii.
Rather than discipline or fire Pilot M, the statement of claim says, WestJet determined that he would never be sent back to Hawaii.
The document also says the company told Ms. Lewis that she would never be scheduled to work with the pilot again – which made it difficult for her to maintain full employment because she could not be scheduled for stand-by or reserve shifts.
In addition, the statement of claim says, she was instructed “not to speak of the sexual assault to anyone else, out of concern for the pilot’s privacy.”
Sounds odd all over. I'm very surprised that WJ wouldn't immediately save face and move to distance themselves as far as possible from the accused, like other airlines have when pilots are brought to task like this. Why attempt a cover-up knowing there is essentially zero chance that the woman would "stay quiet" once she was fired, or hopefully even before?
Boreas wrote:Has this man been found guilty of anything in court? Maybe I missed it...
no not exactly, but from what I read it looks WestJet is not sending the accused back to Hawaii due to him possibly getting questioned by local authorities...that in itself is a red flag to me. Have to wait for more info I guess.
To me the answer from the company's point of view is that he should have been suspended with pay until such time the case was resolved, even if it took years. If there were any chance the allegation could be true. A few years ago they had a issue with crew drinking in Montreal and that is not overly common knowledge. Sh1t happens and once the gene pool gets large stuff like this is bound to happen. That's why many airlines have a 12 hour rule between bottle and throttle. I can't believe that WS would condone crew socialization and alcohol during layovers. Airlines in the past have even gone as far as to split crews up at different hotels to try and prevent this crap. Of all the years I spent doing this I had only one rule. One never played in their "backyard" If you were working with someone, screwing them was too much of a complication to deal with. Take it from the "old" guy -- keep you dick in your pants during work (layovers are work) - life will be a lot simpler and you keep your job. Too many guys have had their career ruined because the little head was doing the thinking. - grasshopper
WS is truly morphing into a completely unrecognizable version of its former self. It's a big cranky airline now and they are going to have to start handling things as such. More and more people are getting a little tired of the inauthentic cult-like behavior. It's typical for big companies to have problems like this, but they need to be handled professionally and appropriately.
I can't say this surprises me. I know it hasn't been proven however enough people have told about how the company image and culture often supersedes socially acceptable norms.
Whatever happened to ethics? Keeping him off the schedule for Hawaii runs, this raises suspicion. Have him return to Hawaii and assist with the Investigation and if there is nothing to the allegation at lease we have transparency. If he is guilty of a sexual assault he shouldn't be working for the company, end of story. If he is indeed guilty I totally feel for the victim/s.
This raises another question, is he not banned from flying all US routes?
Article says it's over the past year she started pushing Westjet harder for action after learning of the previous assault. I would guess she was keeping quiet with assurances it was being dealt with until it became apparent it wasn't.
To me the answer from the company's point of view is that he should have been suspended with pay until such time the case was resolved, even if it took years.
Really? What if she's fabricating the story? I think the proper thing to do is give the pilot an ultimatum that he must return to Hawaii and deal with the investigation. If he doesn't take care of it within a month, then take employment action.
No means no. I'm a big proponent of that. However, based on the story I don't think the lady suffered much (if any) harm. If I was her I may be inclined to keep it in the company and warn other female crew members to report any sort of other incidents.
CID wrote:No means no. I'm a big proponent of that. However, based on the story I don't think the lady suffered much (if any) harm. If I was her I may be inclined to keep it in the company and warn other female crew members to report any sort of other incidents.
No means no ... unless it's only a bit of fondling CID? How aggregious does the behaviour have to be before no actually means no and sexual harassment gets reported to the authorities. If the incident is as described, I would say local authorities and the RCMP are exactly the way to go. Sure give the company a heads up to your employer as well, but you can't rely on them to deal with it for reasons which should be far too obvious at this point.
If Hawaiian authorities have enough they can issue a bench warrant, and Buddy will be arrested next time in the USA and sent to Hawaii. If not he doesn't have to talk to them. 5th amendment rights and all that. Does WJ pay a premium to ETOPS guys, that may have been the penalty. My Buddy is a recovering alcoholic, he was called out for not being westjetty enough because he is now a "slamclicker".
There's a correct protocol for companies to follow when allegations of this kind occur, and no evidence here that WJ didn't follow it. The article is (of course) full of one-sided nonsense and should really be ignored.
A wider point is that by encouraging employees to socialize together WJ is at risk of being accused of fostering or enabling a workplace where harrassment (let alone assault) is likely. They should have a policy in place that no two employees are alone in a room together and should be seen to be taking steps to enforce such a policy. In this case, both the pilot and the flight attendant would have violated such a policy and should be disciplined.
I realize that WJ isn't an Ontario employer, but here's what the OHRC says that employers' duties are. Presumably whichever province WJ is based in has similar rules.
When this woman's lawyer gets smart, that will become the basis of a suit.
Good Evening All:
To be very clear sexual harassment does not belong in the work place FULL STOP!
This presents a very interesting problem for their management if the there was a record of alleged harassment dating back to 2008. Does this mean it was overlooked, covered up or what were they thinking?
Needless to say someone is being invited to the CEO of WestJet for "milk and cookies".
GLORIA GALLOWAY
OTTAWA — The Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, Mar. 02, 2016 8:22 PM EST
Last updated Thursday, Mar. 03, 2016 7:41 AM EST
A former WestJet flight attendant is suing the airline, alleging that it failed to protect her from being sexually assaulted by a pilot who was known to have previously assaulted another woman, that its officials did not discipline her alleged assailant and that she was fired when she tried to find out how the company had responded to her complaint.
Mandalena Lewis says in a statement of claim filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia late Tuesday that, had the Calgary-based airline taken appropriate measures when the first flight attendant was assaulted by the same man, her own ordeal never would have happened.
Ms. Lewis also alleges that she was warned by WestJet to remain silent about the incident. She is asking the court to find that, far from disciplining the man identified as Pilot M, WestJet took steps to protect him from prosecution.
The statement of claim asks for damages in an amount to be determined as well as declarations from WestJet that it did not protect Ms. Lewis, that it caused her further harm and that her employment was wrongfully terminated. None of the allegations has been proven in court.
Asked for comment, WestJet responded in an e-mail by saying the company does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings but will “vigorously” defend itself against the allegations contained in the claim.
“WestJet further confirms its commitment to maintaining a safe and harassment-free environment for its employees and guests and takes its obligations in this respect with the utmost seriousness,” the statement from the airline said.
As a result of lawsuit, SumOf-Us.org, an international consumer watchdog, has launched a petition campaign that urges WestJet chief executive officer Gregg Saretsky to resign his post and calls on the company to immediately update and enforce its policies regarding sexual harassment and assault.
“Women shouldn’t face harassment of any kind at their respective workplaces and no one should fear for their job after reporting sexual assault by a fellow employee,” said Emma Pullman, a lead strategist with SumOfUs.org.
According to Ms. Lewis’s statement of claim, Pilot M invited her and the rest of his flight crew back to his room for drinks during a layover in Maui, Hawaii, in January, 2010. Team spirit is promoted by the company, the court document says, and “as part of that team spirit, socializing on layovers is common and encouraged by WestJet and this often involves alcohol.”
When all other members of the crew had retired for the night, the court document says, the pilot suggested sex and, when Ms. Lewis tried to leave, he threw her onto the bed, kissed her and groped her between the legs. She managed to push him off, then fled the room.
The document says Ms. Lewis reported the assault to another member of the crew the following day and to her WestJet manager upon her return to Canada. She also lodged a complaint with the RCMP, who contacted the police in Maui. But the pilot could not be arrested unless he returned to Hawaii.
Rather than discipline or fire Pilot M, the statement of claim says, WestJet determined that he would never be sent back to Hawaii.
The document also says the company told Ms. Lewis that she would never be scheduled to work with the pilot again – which made it difficult for her to maintain full employment because she could not be scheduled for stand-by or reserve shifts.
In addition, the statement of claim says, she was instructed “not to speak of the sexual assault to anyone else, out of concern for the pilot’s privacy.”
Ms. Lewis “felt demoralized, frustrated and degraded by WestJet,” the claim says.
At a company training session in April of last year, she asked why WestJet does not do more to protect employees from sexual assault.
Four months later, another flight attendant who had attended the same training session called Ms. Lewis to say she had been assaulted by a pilot in 2008 and had informed WestJet.
In their discussion, the two women realized the same man was the alleged assailant in both cases. The court document says Pilot M admitted having sex with the other woman and the evidence indicates that she “did not, and could not, have consented.”
For Ms. Lewis, the statement of claim says, “this information meant that WestJet’s failure to properly investigate and respond to the 2008 complainant’s report of sexual assault by Pilot M has resulted in Pilot M being at liberty to assault others, including the plaintiff in January, 2010.”
In September, 2015, Ms. Lewis started demanding to see her employment file to determine what, if any, action WestJet had taken following her complaint of sexual assault.
When no file was forthcoming, she went on stress leave in December.
Then, in January of this year, she sent the company an e-mail containing a curse word demanding to know where her records were.
The court document says that she was fired for “insubordination” based on the swear word and a disconnected call to a WestJet manager that she had inadvertently dialled.
