Thai Airways Enforce Waistline Rules On Their Flight Attendants

[Nisa]

Amazing they are more concerned with their waistline when I rarely see a Thai Flight Attendant who can even close the overhead bins without climbing up the edge of a seat .... want to talk about safety issues of having to climb onto something not designed to be a ladder 100 times before take-off

If I read the story right it said only 1% of their staff met the body requirements but they gave them 6-months to get in their perceived ideal shape. This would be a lawsuit waiting to happen in the US since I am sure this may not be a healthy time frame given for some workers and may actually be dangerous for some people to try to achieve such body type.

The whole concept of being thin is healthy has been proven false. Thin people are not more healthy than slightly overweight people who, according to some studies, actually live longer.

As for the excuse of women and men having different body types as an excuse to have different standards ... one should also consider people in general have different body types.

If Thai airways wants to improve their international image ... this is not the way to go about it.

Personally I could care less what my flight attendant looks like as long as they appear confident, have a positive attitude and are well groomed. If an airline is putting good looks above safety of their own employees then imagine where they put safety when it comes to their passengers.

[jdinasia]

After that, less than one per cent of about 6,000 flight attendants or 60 persons failed to meet the criteria.

That is 60 people out of 600 did not meet the criteria

[webfact]

Thai Airways Criticized for Crackdown on Fat Flight Attendants

Thai Airways has cracked down on overweight employees, but their sudden call for weight loss has raised concerns about employee rights.

The commissioner of the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand or NHRCT, Parinya Sirisarakarn expressed his concern about a new rule stipulated by Thai Airways International, which orders their flight attendants to lose weight.

Parinya said he understands that Thai Airways needs to develop to keep up with world standards however, the airline is a state enterprise and needs to take the rights of their employees into consideration.

The commissioner said that it must be clarified whether this is a matter of an old rule that has recently been enforced, as it is improper to set up new rules demanding staff to lose weight within a short period of time.

Thai Airways should allow an appropriate length of time for healthy weight loss.

The airline has initially given their employees 6 months to 8 months to improve their body mass index or BMI.

Parinya also raised concerns over health issues as to who would be responsible for the employee's health, as they will have to go on a diet while working hard.

He said executives should start losing weight as an example to all employees, then consider whether 6 to 12 months is practical.

Parinya said Thai Airways should evaluate employees based on their service qualities, as good impression can come from providing good service, and not only from superficial features.

-- Tan Network 2011-03-1

[doggie888888]

While we are at it, they should also charge FAT people more if their waistlines exceed a predetermined level. This level is basically when your guts are going to spill over to the next seat and cause great discomfot to the next passenger.

I am sorry if this offends but what is good for the goose is good for the gander....

[Huey]

Bah still pretty ignorant if you ask me. I don't care if the stewardess is skinny or fat young or old, I just want her to ;

1) Speak and understand English

2) Be Pleasant and helpful

3) Smell nice

[SouthernMan3]

A decent Boss would not expect something of their employees that they would/could not do themselves........................ time the fat cats to trim their waist lines as well !!!

Wrong ---- I hire staff for jobs I am not well suited for all the time! (example -- I am not a teacher, but I am the final word on hiring all foreign staff in my company (including teachers!) I am a decent administrator (imho) but I am not a good teacher (although I am qualified to teach.) My title is Foreign Affairs Director (for a Thai company) and I do business development but my Thai counterparts leave it to me to make those snap judgements about other foreigners, just as I leave it to them to make the final determination about Thai nationals working for us

edit --- however, I would expect that the senior FA on any flight meet the minimum requirements of the job physically

I agree 100 % !!!

[kumsamut]

too afraid to restrict on pilots cuz there will be not enough pilots to operate planes.

[SouthernMan3]

While we are at it, they should also charge FAT people more if their waistlines exceed a predetermined level. This level is basically when your guts are going to spill over to the next seat and cause great discomfot to the next passenger.

I am sorry if this offends but what is good for the goose is good for the gander....

Again, I agree completely !!!

[yom07]

This is just a way of cutting cost. If they can have all the FA sticking to the same waist, that's only one model of uniforms to have in stock.

[snaggletooth]

If this has to do with safety or movement on the plane then why is their a size difference between a female and a male?

Well spotted. Of course it is about attractive appearance. It would be hypocritical to claim otherwise.

When THAI starts to employ Katoey attendants like another airline has announced - will the male or female rules apply? (hopefully the female measurements...)

Maybe the gay members of TV forum could advise on the most appropriate measurements to judge male cabin staff.

As it is, the attendants in Economy class on THAI are usually very nice to look at, and compensate a bit for the hopelessly inadequate AV entertainment on board. Presumably a young attendant is cheaper than a new aircraft seat...

In Business Class, however, it seems that older, more experienced but not usually more attractive attendants get to choose there. So maybe THAI believes that the AV system in Business is all the passengers need to look at. Or maybe it is just the people with "connections" to THAI executives who get to work in Business and First, regardless of looks.

My wife's a flight attendant. She's in business class only because of seniority and no connections. It all depends on your time spent with the airline. When the purser has the roster for each flight he or she assigns the crew, based on seniority, to appropriate positions in the aircraft with the crew having been with the company the longest in the front in business or first class.

But also this weight thing has always gone on. If the wife gains a kilo upon her annual review, she's always heard about it as their bosses degrade them in a room with other managers. It's not a one-on-one deal. It's a humiliation.

[raylo]

Wish the passengers sitting next to me had width restrictions.

I always want the passenger in the next seat to have bladder control, deodarant and a considerate

and healthy IQ.

In certain cases we just dont get what we want. I too prefer Thailands way of not caring too much

about the PC of their hiring requirements. Shame we cannot be that way with certain posters?

[tonititan]

Check out the article in today's newspaper. It indicates that 41 employees have been affected so far (they were bigger than the requirements). However, 28 of these employees were men. Yes, it seems that MEN are the ones having issues, not the ladies.

I kind of doubt that there are that may grossly overweight Thai men working as flight attendants. Rather, I suspect that this shows a flaw in the requirements, namely, the BMI requirement. Most people who understand anything about how BMI is calculated knows that it doesn't reflect different body shapes or body compositions (of fat vs. muscle). So a muscular thin guy is going to have a higher BMI than a thin guy with very little muscle mass. I wonder how many of these 28 guys were "fat," and how many had larger body frames & more muscle. Now THOSE are the kind of flight attendants I want on my planes!

[Captain_Bob]

Haha true, main reason I will no longer fly with a US-based carrier: frumpy wrinkly fake-friendly flight attendants with "here's your dam_n bag of peanuts" attitude. Give me sweet gentle Asian gals/guys any day (even if they're fat =)

[hanssna]

good idea... airline hostesses specially in thailand should be no more than 50 kilo's... if we want to see fat stewadesses, we'll move back to europe.

[thaikahuna]

In America (my country) companies like to say they do not discriminate against gender, age, physical looks and... and ... when hiring. -But a good looking 25 year old will get a job over a aging 40 year old for a position -- not only because of age, but because the other person is cheaper to hire. Look at Fox News, do you ever see a member of their news team that is ugly and over 40??? Yet, this particular news (?) agency will accuse various companies or government organizations for discrimination (by the way, I am not a Fox fan.

I like the thai way of just saying what they really want for job qualifications than lying and acting like they are open to all applicants.

Greta Van Susteren.....

[sirchai]

Wish the passengers sitting next to me had width restrictions.

A real good one....lol :jap:

I'll apply for a job to check if the female staff's suitable for such a high flying job......:jap:

[spectrumisgreen]

They've got some front, give them that.

I've always said its all very well having your seat pointed out to you, but if you can't get past the flight-attendant to reach it...

Edited March 1, 2011 by spectrumisgreen

[sirchai]

In America (my country) companies like to say they do not discriminate against gender, age, physical looks and... and ... when hiring. -But a good looking 25 year old will get a job over a aging 40 year old for a position -- not only because of age, but because the other person is cheaper to hire. Look at Fox News, do you ever see a member of their news team that is ugly and over 40??? Yet, this particular news (?) agency will accuse various companies or government organizations for discrimination (by the way, I am not a Fox fan.

I like the thai way of just saying what they really want for job qualifications than lying and acting like they are open to all applicants.

Greta Van Susteren.....

Are people of your country ( America) aware of the fact that this topic isn't about your favorite News channel, nor the of course immense- number of soap operas.

No country for old men. :jap:

[softgeorge]

I thought they were quite slim compared to Qantas staff

[sunnyrolfe]

Wish the passengers sitting next to me had width restrictions.

Here Here. I always say that. I'm 73KG and allowed 20oKG hold luggage but a 100KG person is allowed the same. Should be a scale for passenger and luggage to be weighed on together and a tax imposed on anything over a certain weight. I do expect flack for this but bring it on. Who cares how big the cabin crew are anyway. We don't have to be squashed next to them do we.

[steffi]

Just look at the typical job posting for Bangkok Airways or any other Thai airline.

[Deeral]

If they cracked down on fat passengers, I would consider flying with them again.

Flying a plane uses fuel and each kilo requires a certain amount of fuel to get sky-born and complete the journey. Fat people smell, use more space and more fuel so they should be put in seats away from others and charged by the kilo.

HOWEVER..... discriminating on the grounds of image and having an arbitrary yardstick such as waistline is just another example of how Thailand's ruling classes are a bunch of incompetent no-hopers who have only got the job through nepotism or graft.

I hope Thai Air continue to be the laughing stock of the aviation industry and this little snippet will add to their continued embarassment.

in the meantime I'll continue to search of other airlines rather than fly with this miserable bunch of wanke_rs.

[sirchai]

good idea... airline hostesses specially in thailand should be no more than 50 kilo's... if we want to see fat stewadesses, we'll move back to europe.

Excuse me Sir. Wasn't it you who's asking in the "my wife's' too fat' forum a serious question?

Your post is a kind of insane, thinking that all European hostesses are fat asses like...aeehh many others. I've seen very attractive German fatties working for Lufthansa. What about some extra pounds in your pocket? :jap:

[toenail]

In America (my country) companies like to say they do not discriminate against gender, age, physical looks and... and ... when hiring. -But a good looking 25 year old will get a job over a aging 40 year old for a position -- not only because of age, but because the other person is cheaper to hire. Look at Fox News, do you ever see a member of their news team that is ugly and over 40??? Yet, this particular news (?) agency will accuse various companies or government organizations for discrimination (by the way, I am not a Fox fan.

I like the thai way of just saying what they really want for job qualifications than lying and acting like they are open to all applicants.

Greta Van Susteren.....

Are people of your country ( America) aware of the fact that this topic isn't about your favorite News channel, nor the of course immense- number of soap operas.

No country for old men. :jap:

________________________

????? you can't read - you missed the message. (doesn't matter what country)

[kuffki]

Wish the passengers sitting next to me had width restrictions.

Here Here. I always say that. I'm 73KG and allowed 20oKG hold luggage but a 100KG person is allowed the same. Should be a scale for passenger and luggage to be weighed on together and a tax imposed on anything over a certain weight. I do expect flack for this but bring it on. Who cares how big the cabin crew are anyway. We don't have to be squashed next to them do we.

May be they should be setting ticket prices by the kg

PS. I hope you are a male weighing 73kg not a female

[sunnyrolfe]

Wish the passengers sitting next to me had width restrictions.

Here Here. I always say that. I'm 73KG and allowed 20oKG hold luggage but a 100KG person is allowed the same. Should be a scale for passenger and luggage to be weighed on together and a tax imposed on anything over a certain weight. I do expect flack for this but bring it on. Who cares how big the cabin crew are anyway. We don't have to be squashed next to them do we.

May be they should be setting ticket prices by the kg

PS. I hope you are a male weighing 73kg not a female

Yes I'm a bloke, But from what I saw on my last trip to UK a year ago even 73KG would be below average for a female these days. How we progress.

[kuffki]

If they cracked down on fat passengers, I would consider flying with them again.

Flying a plane uses fuel and each kilo requires a certain amount of fuel to get sky-born and complete the journey. Fat people smell, use more space and more fuel so they should be put in seats away from others and charged by the kilo.

HOWEVER..... discriminating on the grounds of image and having an arbitrary yardstick such as waistline is just another example of how Thailand's ruling classes are a bunch of incompetent no-hopers who have only got the job through nepotism or graft.

I hope Thai Air continue to be the laughing stock of the aviation industry and this little snippet will add to their continued embarassment.

in the meantime I'll continue to search of other airlines rather than fly with this miserable bunch of wanke_rs.

and people with no brain are really annoying yet others have the pleasure to put up with them in every day life.

You should continue your search for other airlines who accomodate "special" ones, or you can always stay in Oz and do a huge favor to the rest of the world

[DumFarang]

This is purely a fuel saving green initiative that should be applauded

Yes, oil prices are rising with the middle east in turmoil. I applaud Thai airways too for controlling what they can thinking green!

[anterian]

Most airlines have a minimum height requirement, Attendants must be able to reach the overhead lockers. Although it is quite pleasant watching small Asian attendants straining on tiptoe to close a locker

[bangkokcitylimits]

Thai Airways crackdown on fat flight attendants;

Crackdown