Airlines Address Abusive-Passenger Issue

<H1>Airlines Address Abusive-Passenger Issue</H1><H3>By Judi Bredemeier</H3>For the first time, airline employees' unions are making a concerted effort to deal with the deteriorating state of airline-passenger relations by forming task forces to discuss the issue and writing policies to deal with possible confrontations between airline employees and distressed customers.

The actions are in response to the realization that business travel-which has never been easy-today is beset with a host of added stressors that are bringing out the worst in a lot of travelers. The consequences are verbal abuse, bizarre behavior and outright assaults for which travelers' companies ultimately could be legally liable.

"People are losing it on the road these days," said consultant and attorney Tom Wilkinson, president of the Travel Management Group in Alexandria, Va. "Airlines don't hesitate to cancel flights and then ignore passengers, and hotels are walking people with confirmed reservations more often. That makes some people do things that are very, very unpleasant."

Crowded planes-caused by load factors that have skyrocketed as discretionary travelers respond to low-fare offers-are just part of the problem, according to Marty Salfen, senior vice president-North America for the International Air Passenger Association in Dallas.

"Business travelers are extremely frustrated because expectations no longer match reality," he said. "Airlines are still advertising great service, but unless you travel in first or business class, you don't get the kind of service that used to be standard in coach. There are fewer flight attendants, and there is no leg room."

Cathy Borklund of Fairfax Station, Va., a former flight attendant who worked for Delta Air Lines for nine years, agreed that declining service levels have lowered passengers' irritation thresholds. "We'd hustle out hot breakfasts in coach on 45-minute flights, which used to appease a lot of otherwise grouchy people," she said. "Now you're lucky to get coffee."

To address the problem, the Air Transport Association, the Washington, D.C.-based trade group representing U.S. airlines, put the topic on the agenda of several of its committees for the first time this past spring, said ATA spokesman Chris Chiames.

"We have to begin to look at how best to protect our employees and other passengers," he said. "It's unfortunate, but I guess it's not surprising in an era where people are less civil in general."

In addition, a coalition of seven unions representing flight attendants has formed a task force and begun drafting a model policy on dealing with abusive behavior by passengers, said Jill Gallagher, spokeswoman for the Washington, D.C.-based Association of Flight Attendants, which represents the cabin crews of 23 carriers.

The unions' task force will develop standards that will mean tougher penalties for abusive and unruly passengers, who are seldom prosecuted and even more rarely sent to jail. The unions want the Federal Aviation Administration to tighten vague regulations on interfering with flight crews. They also want airlines to be more aggressive in reporting altercations to the FBI, which has jurisdiction over any intrastate or international air security issue, arguing that many cases are not pursued because the airlines don't want to assume the legal expenses of prosecuting and want to avoid the negative publicity of a court dispute.

The group hopes to have a policy "that's acceptable to the airlines" in place by the end of the year, Gallagher said.

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents American Airlines' in-flight service crews, also has put together a joint task force with American's management. Cliff O'Neal, a spokesman for Dallas-based APFA, said that at a March meeting American Airlines president Donald Carty promised union officials that the airline will be "very aggressive" in dealing with belligerent passengers.

Experts say companies should pay attention to their road warriors' worsening environment, not only out of concern for their travelers but also because of possible legal consequences.

If a traveler becomes abusive to an airline employee, warned Wilkinson, his or her company could be liable, especially in cases of physical injury. If such an incident occurs, the travel manager should make sure that it is reported not only to the traveler's supervisor and senior management, but to the company's legal department or counsel as well, Wilkinson said.

The most recent high-profile case of passenger abuse was the case of New York investment banker Gerard Finneran, who was recently sentenced to two years' probation after an incident on a United Airlines flight from South America to New York. Finneran, president of TCW Americas, climbed atop a service cart in the first-class cabin and relieved himself on the food; he also threatened a flight attendant. He has made restitution of $50,000 to United, to cover both the cleaning of the aircraft and reimbursement of fares for the other passengers who had to witness his behavior, and was ordered to refrain from drinking excessively on airplanes and to undergo counseling.

For now, it seems that travel suppliers are taking these tensions more seriously than the corporations whose travelers may be provoking them.

"I haven't seen corporations addressing these issues yet," said consultant Susan Stowe of Caldwell Associates in Washington, D.C. "I used to manage an emergency center for a travel management company, and I've seen firsthand how abusive travelers can be to travel agents. It would be a much better world if companies started paying attention to travelers' behavior."

Experts agreed that it is nearly impossible for companies to address behavioral issues through travel policies. "It's a really tricky thing," said Wilkinson. "If you write a policy that says, 'you will behave, you will not get drunk, you will not assault people while traveling,' you'll create a lot of ill will, because you're implying that most of your people, who are intelligent professionals, might behave that way."

Nevertheless, there are concrete steps travel managers can take to deal with travelers' behavioral problems.

"There needs to be a lot more emphasis on educating travelers about what to do in high-stress situations," said Wilkinson. "There needs to be more corporate training on walking to the phone and dialing your agency's 800 number instead of getting into an argument with the ticket agent."

Carol Salcito, president of Management Alternatives in Stamford, Conn., said it is helpful for travel managers to bring in travel supplier representatives on a regular basis for dialogue with travelers.

"Most of the time, people just need someone to listen to them and respond to concerns," she said. "Once they get a chance to vent their frustrations, the potential for incidents gets diffused.