easyJet swaps 'ladies and gentlemen' with 'welcome everyone to be more inclusive
Pilots and cabin crew on easyJet flights have been told to ditch the traditional ‘ladies and gentlemen’ after receiving a complaint from a university lecturer.
Staff at the airline have instead been advised to say ‘welcome everyone’ in a bid to be more ‘inclusive and welcoming’ to trans and non-binary people.
But some social media have been upset by the firm’s attempt to be ‘woke’ and have vowed never to use the firm again.
It comes after Dr Andi Fugard, who works at London’s Birbeck University, complained about the airline on Twitter in August.
The lecturer said: ‘Dear @easyjet, are you in some kind of competition to see how many times you can reinforce gender binaries?
‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls’, perfume strictly segregated again by ‘ladies and gentlemen’.
‘Ditch sir/madam too. An organisation as huge as yours must do better.’
On their Twitter bio, Dr Andi Fugard’s identifies as trans non-binary and uses the phrases ‘Disaster Queer Spinster and ‘Them Fatale’.
Responding to their tweet, the airline said: ‘At easyJet we do not discriminate against any individual – passengers or staff members.
‘We are a pan-European airline with the aim of connecting people of all nationalities across Europe so there is certainly no room in our organisation for discrimination of any kind.’
Last night the company denied enforcing a ban on saying ‘ladies and gentlemen’ and said crews had just been ‘guided away’ from saying it.
But a source told the Sun that anyone who ignores this advice would be ‘very brave’ to do so.
The move has predictably sparked backlash online, with people calling it a ‘terrible’ decision and ‘ridiculous nonsense’.
One Twitter user said: ‘Make no mistake, if this is true I will never fly @easyJet again.
‘Our norms and traditions are being eroded by woke idiots who want to force identity politics down our throats. Ladies and Gentlemen, #boycotteasyJet’
Another said: ‘Give me a break! You can’t say “ladies and gentlemen”?! Get #woke, go broke!
‘Have you learned nothing from what happened to @Gillette? They lost billions trying to cater to one per cent of the population. Go for it. You’re seriously trying to appease people like this??’
An easyJet spokesman said: ‘We want our crew to be welcoming to everyone onboard and so have provided some guidance to them of how to best do that in a way that is inclusive for everyone.’
But some social media have been upset by the firm’s attempt to be ‘woke’ and have vowed never to use the firm again.
It comes after Dr Andi Fugard, who works at London’s Birbeck University, complained about the airline on Twitter in August.
The lecturer said: ‘Dear @easyjet, are you in some kind of competition to see how many times you can reinforce gender binaries?
‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls’, perfume strictly segregated again by ‘ladies and gentlemen’.
‘Ditch sir/madam too. An organisation as huge as yours must do better.’
On their Twitter bio, Dr Andi Fugard’s identifies as trans non-binary and uses the phrases ‘Disaster Queer Spinster and ‘Them Fatale’.
Responding to their tweet, the airline said: ‘At easyJet we do not discriminate against any individual – passengers or staff members.
‘We are a pan-European airline with the aim of connecting people of all nationalities across Europe so there is certainly no room in our organisation for discrimination of any kind.’
Last night the company denied enforcing a ban on saying ‘ladies and gentlemen’ and said crews had just been ‘guided away’ from saying it.
But a source told the Sun that anyone who ignores this advice would be ‘very brave’ to do so.
The move has predictably sparked backlash online, with people calling it a ‘terrible’ decision and ‘ridiculous nonsense’.
One Twitter user said: ‘Make no mistake, if this is true I will never fly @easyJet again.
‘Our norms and traditions are being eroded by woke idiots who want to force identity politics down our throats. Ladies and Gentlemen, #boycotteasyJet’
Another said: ‘Give me a break! You can’t say “ladies and gentlemen”?! Get #woke, go broke!
‘Have you learned nothing from what happened to @Gillette? They lost billions trying to cater to one per cent of the population. Go for it. You’re seriously trying to appease people like this??’
An easyJet spokesman said: ‘We want our crew to be welcoming to everyone onboard and so have provided some guidance to them of how to best do that in a way that is inclusive for everyone.’