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LOT operations boss sacked for ‘fat shaming’ rival BA cabin crew
The operations director for LOT Polish Airlines has been sacked for posting a series of photos on Facebook mocking the crew of rival British Airways.
Katarzyna Richter was accused of fat shaming and cyber bullying after she took a BA flight from Gatwick to Poland last week and posted afterwards about the appearance of the BA crew.
She said "Today, my attention was drawn to grooming and appearance of British Airways cabin crew members, unpolished shoes, holes in tights, too tight uniform, double chin, rotten and uneven teeth, messy hairstyle."
She also suggested they weren’t very good at their jobs.
Her comments were posted along with photos she’d secretly taken of the crew, leading her to be accused of cyber bullying.
One BA employee told The Sun: "How dare this airline executive invite the public to assess the appearance of a rival carrier’s workers. The primary job of BA staff is to keep passengers safe.
"This woman should know more than anyone how to behave. She must be sacked for fat shaming BA crew while going about their duties."
An official for LOT later confirmed she had been sacked.
"We are truly sorry for this situation. The comments published by one of our employees on the private Facebook profile are contrary to the applicable standards and the value system adopted at LOT Polish Airlines," the official told Metro.
"Such behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated by our company, therefore we decided to terminate the co-operation with Richter with immediate effect.
"Furthermore, we ensure that this situation will never happen again by drawing even more attention to the notification of social media policy and applicable procedures to our employees," the spokesperson added.
Richter later apologised, saying: "I regret my behavior — I should not judge the competence and appearance of employees of another airline."
BA said it is proud of its crew and the ‘exceptional service that they deliver to our customers every day’.
Picture: Twitter
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Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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