Westjet F/A Sues over Sexual Harassment by Pilot
 

If the allegations are proven to be true they will definitely hurt WJ's squeaky clean image of an employee/passenger friendly airline. I wonder if they will try and settle before trial to avoid the publicity instead of "vigorously" defending itself - a standard boiler plate statement often used by defendants in civil cases.

As with many things, there is more here than the lawsuit claims. The sexual harassment regulations are very clear and must be investigated by a harassment officer, when a complaint is made. Maybe she didn't like the outcome, who knows. As this goes through the process we will get a clearer picture of the complaint and incident.

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".

This is taken from the Globe and Mail to save some time getting to it.

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.

Fired" based on a swear word", Good lord, a well known supervisory pilot during my day was known as "Captain F----K," this being his only adjective/noun or what have you, a great guy, but certainly not PC!

I think her lawyer made a very intelligent pleading. Rather than seeking an exorbitant amount of damages she wants WJ to come clean and is seeking a declaration that "it did not protect Ms. Lewis, that it caused her further harm and that her employment was wrongfully terminated." I understand where she is coming from and was allegedly screwed around by her former employer.

The airline I was with, in its forty-five years existence, never had a single reported incident like these ones alleged. The mutual unstated accord between male and female crew was one of respect, and generally liking, for the other, which with the manner of the recruiting and the shrewd judges of character who did it, was just a given, but doubtless never taken for granted. On the job, a few of the priceless exchanges are as sharp as yesterday.

to go briefly off the deadly serious topic (empanel the jury) here being aired -

'Murray' (an F/O somewhat vain) ' has anyone ever told you how much the women find you irresistible ?' says Susan passing him his coffee. Murray looks up with a sheepish grin. . . 'No' he says. 'Oh right' says Susan 'then how the hell did you find out?' (Did I have to suppress the urge to wet myself?)

When Kate, a young woman possessed of supreme self-confidence, was being interviewed for an F/O vacancy the three senior management pilots gave her a good grilling, which she handled well. As she was about to leave the room, interview over, one of the men said 'Before you go Kate, tell us what would be your response to an episode of sexual harassment that might take place just one-to-one.' "Oh easy . .. I'd just ask him not to say a word.' at which she said her goodbyes.
The laughter cleared the air entirely. Two weeks later she commenced her ground school.

Good Evening All:

I have taken this posting from the Airline Employee Forum and is written by a gentleman that goes by Dagger. Over the years I have enjoyed his postings as he writes very clearly and has been in the industry.

Please read what his thoughts are on this matter.

“In today's employment law, and considering the FA was not unionized in Canada Labour Code sense (which would be the case at AC, AT, etc.), there is nevertheless be an onus on an employer to 1. thoroughly investigate the incident, as impartially as possible, and 2) provide professional assistance to the parties to deal with the impact of the action. A company today must have a robust policy of sexual and other harassment.

Actually, this is one rare occasion where WS would have been far better off it the flight attendants were unionized. I have a generally poor regard for CUPE but it would have conducted a vigorous review of her complaint before even filing a grievance with the company, and this would have been settled for better or worse in-house. In the absence of a union and proper grievance procedures, this has been allowed to fester, the company may have mishandled aspects of it, and the FA is well within her Code and employment law rights to sue. Whether she is a feminist or not, a pain in the ass or not, these issues have little relevance to the lawsuit. In fact, I'd say Pilot M is almost an afterthought in this case, based on what is out there in the public domain - in fact, he might be re-tired by now, or close enough to be packaged off, made to disappear so to speak. From here on in, it's the company and its handling of the case that are the central part of the story.

There are many questions that will have to be dealt with in this legal case:

1. Did the incident as described by plaintiff happen as described, or in some lesser or greater form that would constitute sexual assault?

2. Did she file her complaint (not the lawsuit, her internal complaint) in a timely manner?

3. How did the company handle the flight attendants' complaint? If it was anything less than fair and scrupulous to the flight attendant concerned, this will look bad on WestJet even if the actual complaint is exaggerated or groundless?

4. If it wasn't sexual assault, did the incident rise to the level of sexual harassment?

5. Did this pilot have a "prior" on his company record, i.e. was the first alleged assault known to the company?

6. If the pilot did behave improperly, on one or more than one occasions, what discipline or corrective action was undertaken by the company?

7. Seeing it had a problem with one pilot, did the company take remedial action of any kind to help insure that there wouldn't be more such incidents, i.e. did it tighten its policy, assure staff of confidentiality to encourage them to come forward, etc.

8. Did the company protect the pilot more than the FA in pursuing its investigation? i.e. did he have friends in high places. The Old Boys network?

9. Was she fired with reasonable cause?

I can think of many more questions, but don't want to bore you all. An incident like this, unless proven to be entirely an exaggeration - i.e. a gentleman who sought sex but when rebuffed, was entirely gentlemanly - is going to hurt WS more than a certain spying case against a rival airline many years ago. It will hurt in hiring staff, it will hurt in the marketplace, it will make relations between the two employee groups a little more intense - are there still these morale-building mixers on the road? It tars all WS pilots, which is unfair and unfortunate. Every employee group at every company has a couple of people who cannot control their impulses. What the company does when they fail to control their impulses now becomes the public's business.”

She had to join them

So PHX what is your message here?

Do you condone sexual harassment or not?

From day one West Jet have displayed a very poor standard of corporate behavior, it first came to light in the media when they were ordered by the courts to donate a whole bunch of cash to a named charity {under an agreement dictated by Claude Taylor, probably the most ethical airline CEO ever} this was a result of their use of private passwords to obtain data from Air Canada, which was simply theft. When will corporations work it out that such behavior always backfires given time? Just ask VW if you doubt this!

I condemn sexual harassment of any kind, but she stayed after all others had retired, she didn't flee the room at sex suggestions, then the intoxicated pilot jumped with his emergency without having proper clearance for landing.

This entire matter is a can of worms, legally. What did or did not take place in a hotel room in another country will never be proven. Also, people are quick to forget the PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE.

My only question, is that if this assault was as serious as is alleged, why on earth did the FA not report it to the local police immediately????? It is a Criminal matter, not one to be dealt with as a work-related complaint.

Sorry, but I do smell an oversized rodent here.

It's a civil matter and the standard of proof is much lower than if it were criminal so I wouldn't say it will not be proven if it goes to court.
It's well known that victims of sexual assault, where the parties know each other, often do not report these things right away. In many such cases the victims do not even report the incident and continue to see the perpetrator socially. See R. v. Ghomeshi, a trial which was just completed in Toronto. You can find the media reports if you Google it.

.

oops. . ... did he really mean to word it like that?

Good Afternoon All:

And now there are six more flight attendants who have come forward according to CTV Vancouver. In a read of this serious allegation there is an appearance of obstruction of justice if it is proven their management did in deed have the pilot stop flying to Hawaii. Reading the other comments from other flight attendants " Management has outright said that they will expunge people who are causing disruption within the workplace, and that people who are questioning the system are no longer welcome,” !

From another poster who said this:

" The issue here is not if the accused is guilty or not, only a proper investigation and if necessary a trial can determine that. The issue is that there was no apparent investigation.

In the recent past you may remember Air Canada went through a much less serious issue of sexual harassment due to racy pictures hidden in the flight deck. A complaint was filed by a female pilot and I'm not kidding when I say the company went on the war path to correct the situation. Anybody who laughed it off as a trivial thing back then knows precisely where the company stands on the issue today.

Attempting to paper over an accusation as serious as this has blown up in Westjet's face in a big way. Bad press is the least of their worries at this point, their real problem is losing the trust of every one of their employees and that includes the pilots. This guy - guilty or innocent - will be thought of as guilty by everyone he works with regardless. Westjet employees, the alleged victim(s), and especially the accused deserve a proper investigation to determine the truth.

This isn't somebody peeved at being insulted or anything so mundane...someone has been accused of sexual assault. The seriousness of this allegation demands that it either be verified or exposed as false. Either case demands strong action by the company against one party or the other which did not occur.

Keeping the pilot out of Hawaii and/or firing the FA for "insubordination" smells just like the steaming pile that it is. If WestJet had carried out a proper investigation they would either have supported the FA in filing a complaint with the police, or they would have fired the FA for falsely accusing another employee after first documenting their response to the allegation in minute detail. Neither happened."

For the CTV web link follow this:
WestJet employees speak out in wake of pilot sex assault allegations | CTV Vancouver News

Good Morning All:

This the response that the CEO of WestJet sent out via his blog.

When this situation is resolved by the courts it will most likely become a case study on how to proactively react to a set of very serious allegations dating back to 2008 and 2010.

I really feel sorry for the employees of WestJet as they struggle under this cloud.

WestJet CEO?s response to sexual assault allegations

You may have read or seen stories in the media about a lawsuit filed against WestJet by a former employee, suggesting WestJet failed to take proper action after she alleged a pilot sexually assaulted her. We will file a statement of defense.

My commitment to our guests and to our people is to be transparent and forthcoming. I am writing directly to you, our guests, to provide you with as much information as I can. I am the accountable executive responsible for the safety and well-being of our more than 11,000 employees, which is a responsibility I do not take lightly.

Sexual assault is a serious matter. Every company has a responsibility to ensure the safety and well-being of all its employees, and this is a responsibility we take most seriously at WestJet. As a husband, father of a daughter and brother to a sister I understand how important it is to get this right, no matter the role or gender of the complainant.

Investigations did take place on these matters and they were subsequently closed. We are reviewing the investigations to ensure they were diligently carried out, and no new information has come to light since the investigations were undertaken six years ago. While this is underway, we are accommodating (out of active flying duty) those mentioned or otherwise affected by the alleged claims out of concern for their well-being and the continued safe operation of the airline.

Allegations are a serious concern whether true or untrue. We are acting in accordance with our code of conduct and ethics, and if new information comes out we will thoroughly investigate the matter.

Ours is a reporting culture, as it should be. Every day, thousands of our employees and tens of thousands of our guests expect a safe experience with WestJet and we are committed to providing one. We have an active whistleblower hotline and safety reporting system, which are evidence of our strong culture of reporting concerns to management. Regardless of its nature, each complaint made through our whistleblower hotline, including the outcomes of the investigations, is reported to the Safety, Health and Environment Committee of our Board of Directors. We have always treated any complaint with the seriousness it deserves and will continue to do so.

It was reported in the media today that there might be additional people who have come forward. The company has received no further information at this time. As has always been the case, we encourage our employees to report any concern that goes against our code of conduct or where they feel safety is at risk, and we urge them to bring any new information to our attention.

Other allegations have been made in the media that we have terminated employees for attempts to organize a union drive, a statement that is patently false. We have responded to a recent claim of such conduct with the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) and it is a publicly available document.

I am proud of the company we’ve built together and firmly believe that the more than 11,000 WestJetters who work hard every day to deliver our brand of friendly, caring service will continue to do so as we work through these as yet unfounded allegations.

I will continue to provide information as warranted and I thank you for your continued support.

Good Morning All:

A updated article from the Globe and Mail which is tough reading. Again why has this taken so long? How long did management at WestJet know about this? The sad thing is six more employees have been asking for information from the lawyer of the F/A who has brought forward the allegations.

WestJet takes two employees out of flying duty in wake of sexual-assault allegation - The Globe and Mail

WestJet takes two employees out of flying duty in wake of sexual-assault allegation Add to ...
CALGARY — The Canadian Press

Published Friday, Mar. 04, 2016 7:12PM EST

Last updated Saturday, Mar. 05, 2016 12:04AM EST



WestJet has grounded two employees named in a lawsuit filed by a former flight attendant that contends the company failed to take proper action after she alleged she was sexually assaulted on the job.

Airline spokeswoman Lauren Stewart says in an e-mail that two employees mentioned in the court filings have been taken out of active flying duty while the company reviews investigations it conducted into historic allegations of sexual assault.

CEO Gregg Saretsky says in a statement posted online today that the employees were taken out of service because of concern about their well-being and the safe operation of the airline.

Former flight attendant Mandalena Lewis launched a lawsuit against the Calgary-based airline alleging the company failed to respond adequately after she reported an alleged sexually assaulted by a pilot during a stopover six years ago in Hawaii.

Lewis says in a statement of claim filed with the B.C. Supreme Court that she met another flight attendant last year who reported being sexually assaulted by the same pilot and was allegedly told by WestJet to keep quiet.

The company has not filed a statement of defence and none of the allegations have been proven in court.

Saretsky says WestJet has a whistleblower hotline and always treats complaints seriously.

I agree
 

"So PHX what is your message here?

Do you condone sexual harassment or not?"

I agree with PHX. In fact, during such social events, if held in my room, I would request her to leave with the others. I had a policy of never remaining behind in one of the FAs rooms, never closing the door to the room if we were chatting, but remaining by the door and then going to my room. Anything else…..do it in a public area.

There are just too many nut cases out there of both sexes and the best policy is to find a willing partner from another airline! In other words, don´t sh#t where you eat."

Good Evening All:

According to the CTV YVR video (link below) the number is up to six now.

WestJet workplace culture under fire | CTV Vancouver News

I find this posting from another web site worthy of reflection.

"The German language has a very interesting term "schadenfreude" which loosely translated means "taking pleasure in the misfortune of others". To be very succinct this is not the case in my writing as I am sorry to watch the work persona of every WestJet employee being tarred by the alleged incidents of 2008/2010 along with hearing about further allegations of six more flight attendants coming forward about the pilot in question. For those who have not worked in an airline environment news of ones bad behavior travels very fast in a small tight knit community. It will take more than "team building" to reestablish the trust between back end and front end.
The CEO of WestJet should in the case of the allegations being true along with to stop the hemorrhaging of bad news should unequivocally state publically that sexual harassment has no place in either the workplace or culture at WestJet. To aid in the healing the alleged whistleblowers/complainants should be reintroduced to the workplace along with a formal apology including formal assurances that this policy is reviewed in the next Annual Recurrent Training by all employees of WestJet. The final being if the pilot in question did do what was he alleged he should be terminated with cause."

I don't agree with a refresher in annual ground school/crm. I've kept my act together for 26 years. I have zero interest in listening to some instructor tell me that I need to keep my hands to myself. How about making an example of these people (if they are in fact guilty) and likewise, if management were guilty of not acting appropriate then they need to be held accountable.

The shame does not belong to the victim. The shame belongs to the abuser .


Abusers can be cunning sociopaths and can fool even the most intelligent investigator. If what has happened in some church's ,college's and institutions is an example that the abusers can fool most people .Except those being abused.

I can see your point but in the vast majority of the situations like this A.R.T. is for the 1% not the 99%.

Years ago for A.R.T. we all sat through AIDS in the workplace for one year and addiction problems for two years in a row but in the end there was a solid understanding of what they entail making all of us emphatic to those with those afflictions.

More to the point there were no more sick jokes about the above mentioned illness's as well

Good Morning All:

This is taken from another website on the ongoing allegations.

"The PR problem now is that this is becoming a regular story, with new people coming forward, new allegations, and the picture developing is no longer just question of one pilot and one flight attendant, but a systemic problem: Did Westjet create and maintain an environment where a few rogue individuals could act like predators and the worst punishment they would receive was to be separated at work from their prey?

If that's what forms in the public mind, it will do discernible damage to the Westjet brand and the willingness of some people to fly Westjet - some group and convention business will be the first to go, many organizations have codes of conduct they expect to be upheld. God forbid if it starts looking like Westjet actually protected predator pilots. That will hurt a lot in the pocketbook. This is, after all, 2016.

I don't think Greg's response was right. The airline has a Tylenol problem, and needs to double down on re-assuring the staff and public that this doesn't happen any more because it can't happen any more - the safeguards and deterrents in place are robust. Eight alleged victims sounds less like a lawsuit by a single FA and more like a systemic issue."

G'day.


Which website was this taken from - if you don't mind?


It appears to be an opinion of an employee from an airline - but not WJ -- A.C. no doubt, however his/her facts are incorrect according to today's news.


`

Possibility of a class action: Lawyer considers class-action suit in alleged WestJet sexual assault case - The Globe and Mail

Good Afternoon PacWest

Here is the web site author is Dagger no idea of any affiliation but his writing is very succinct

http://theairlinewebsite.com/topic/4...estjet/?page=5

More of Dagger's thoughts and a news article he posted:

I'm sure people engage in sexual activity. It's as old as the human race and why we are here. And airline pilots and FAs? Well, a lot of FAs marry pilots, so yes, there is fraternizing. I submit to you that every company has office parties, every company has men and women from the same office, maybe the same department, meeting in the bar down the street. And bosses exert power over employees which can lead to a nasty workplace environment, not only for the predator and victim, but for all of their co-workers who know what is going on, and are angry or resentful of the central characters - I've seen the latter first hand.

In the Westjet case, the issue is one of fact- did the event occur as alleged. It's about consent (or lack thereof) by the individuals and compliance with the company's policy and the law. The nub of the Westjet issue are these questions:



1. What did the airline know about any of the victims, whether we are talking about one, two or nine?

2. When did it know?

3. How thorough and professional was the investigation or investigations?

4. Was evidence withheld from police?

5. Was remedial action required, and was it taken, and if remedial action was taken was it commensurate with the circumstances of the case (.i.e did it fit the 'crime'?

6. Were individuals in this case treated fairly, was dismissal justified for the plaintiff? Was Pilot M shielded from having to face the consequences of his actions?

7. Are Westjet's sexual harassment rules and complaints procedures robust, and are they applied diligently?

8. How high up the food chain did plaintiff complaint go? (I'd be subpoenaing every email the relevant officials ever sent or received going back to 2008)

9. Does Westjet have more to hide than the information in the public domain as of tonight?

And one more thing: Gregg's stock in trade is his swagger. Whereas someone like Calin almost never utters the word WestJet, Gregg always seem to be trying to stick it to Air Canada in his public declarations. It's very American-style.

Well, from my experience, sometimes guys who think they have oversize balls aren't the sensitive types who can empathize with people who tend not to be his or her sheeple followers. People with too much swagger often have narcissistic tendencies that blind them to some things around them - call it selective vision.



Lawyer considers class-action suit in alleged WestJet sexual assault case
By GLORIA GALLOWAY
Sean Herm, the lawyer for the former WestJet flight attendant Mandalena Lewis, says a potential class action suit would include other women lodging similar complaints against the company
The lawyer for a former WestJet flight attendant who alleges the airline failed to protect her from being sexually assaulted by a pilot says he is contemplating turning her suit into a class action that would include other women lodging similar complaints against the company.

"We are certainly considering it," said Sean Hern, the lawyer for Mandalena Lewis, who filed a statement of claim against WestJet in the Supreme Court of British Columbia last week.

"It just depends on how many women there are and what their circumstances would be," Mr. Hern said Monday. "It's something that certainly is on the radar."

A representative of the WestJet Professional Flight Attendants Association said additional women have "come forward" with allegations of assault to representatives of the union, which has yet to be certified. They have been referred to Mr. Hern, said the man, who did not want to be identified because of concerns about his own employment.

Mr. Hern would not confirm that he had discussed the case with other potential complainants, saying, "I don't talk about people who talk to me."

Ms. Lewis alleges in her statement of claim that the airline failed to protect her from being sexually assaulted by a pilot who was known to have 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. None of the allegations has been proven in court.

WestJet officials say the company will "vigorously" defend itself against Ms. Lewis's claim. Company spokeswoman Lauren Stewart said on Monday that the company has not been contacted by other employees who are alleging assault.

Gregg Saretsky, WestJet's president, said in an online statement late last week that the safety of his employees is something he does not take lightly and that sexual assault is a serious matter.

Investigations of Ms. Lewis's allegations of sexual assault, and those of the second flight attendant, were conducted and subsequently closed, said Mr. Saretsky, but they are now being reviewed to ensure that they were diligently conducted and that no new information has come to light.

Emma Pullman, a strategist with SumOfUs.org, an international consumer watchdog, said that, over the weekend, 17,000 people signed her group's petition urging Mr. Saretsky to resign and calling on the company to enforce its policies on sexual harassment and assault. About 10,000 identified themselves as WestJet customers, Ms. Pullman said.

According to Ms. Lewis's statement of claim, a man referred to as Pilot M sexually assaulted her in 2010 during a layover in Hawaii. She says she reported the assault to WestJet officials but, rather than discipline or fire Pilot M, she was told "not to speak of the sexual assault to anyone else, out of concern for the pilot's privacy."

The claim says Ms. Lewis learned last year that another flight attendant complained to WestJet in 2008 of being assaulted by the same pilot. Ms. Lewis argues in her statement of claim that, had the company responded appropriately to that allegation, her own assault would not have occurred.

The court document goes on to say Ms. Lewis was fired in January of this year for "insubordination" based on the swear word contained in an e-mail she wrote to WestJet officials and a disconnected call to a WestJet manager that she had inadvertently dialled.

Ms. Stewart, the WestJet spokeswoman, said both Pilot M and the flight attendant who complained about being assaulted in 2008 have been take of the flight schedule while the company reviews the investigations it conducted into the alleged assaults. She would not say whether the two employees are being paid while they are grounded.

PacWest further t the last post I just saw this on the CBC website. Please keep in mind all news articles by a news organization is first vetted by the editor than the legal department for accuracy and legal concerns. The web link has a video taken from The National

WestJet's handling of sex assault claim left employees vulnerable, says fired flight attendant



WestJet's handling of sex assault claim left employees vulnerable, says fired flight attendant - Business - CBC News

Mandalena Lewis alleges she was sexually assaulted by a pilot while on a layover in Hawaii in 2010

By Ioanna Roumeliotis, CBC News Posted: Mar 07, 2016 6:24 PM ET Last Updated: Mar 08, 2016 12:06 PM ET

The feelings never left her: fear, anger, betrayal. Mandalena (Mandy) Lewis says it's been an emotional roller coaster since she reported being sexually assaulted six years ago, and especially since she learned she might not be the only former WestJet flight attendant to have made such allegations."I'm just disappointed," she said in an interview with CBC News in Vancouver. "They failed their employees. They failed their flight attendants. They failed to protect us."

Lewis is suing her former employer, claiming that after she reported that she was sexually assaulted by a pilot on a layover in Hawaii in 2010, WestJet Airlines did not properly investigate the allegation and chose to protect the pilot and eventually fired her for pursuing the matter.

"It was hell," she said in her first television interview. "It was real hell what I went through [to] try to seek justice and follow protocol on how to deal with this stuff."

'I was petrified'

Lewis claims she was assaulted during a Jan. 24, 2010, layover at the Makena Beach Resort in Maui. She says she accepted an invitation from the captain of her Vancouver-Maui flight to have drinks on the balcony of his hotel room. While she was there, he suddenly grabbed her and dragged her onto the bed and began groping her genitals, Lewis alleges.

"So, when we were at this point, of him on top of me on the bed and me screaming, him kissing my neck, my whole face being squished into the side of the bedding, I just ended up getting my feet under him, my heels, and I kicked, and then he fell backwards into the TV stand. I then got up and left," she said.

She has identified the pilot only as "Pilot M."

"I was petrified," Lewis said. "It's a moment where you realize how you think you fit in this world is not true … that someone can treat you like you are a thing, like you're just a thing."

Upon returning to Vancouver, her home base, Lewis reported the alleged assault to her managers and to the RCMP, who contacted police in Maui. The U.S. federal prosecutor in Maui laid charges, but Lewis said she was told the pilot can only be arrested if he returns to the island.

CBC news has confirmed there are charges pending against the pilot but could not verify the exact charges.

None of the allegations contained in the lawsuit have been proven in court.

Lewis said that when she reported the alleged assault, she thought the pilot would be fired and that the company would alert other employees and review its sexual assault policies.

"I thought this was going to go completely different," she said.

Pilot, flight attendant grounded

Lewis's civil claim, filed in B.C. Supreme Court last week, alleges that WestJet failed to adequately investigate or respond to her initial report.

WestJet CEO Gregg Saretsky said in a statement released last week that "investigations did take place on these matters, and they were subsequently closed."

"We are reviewing the investigations to ensure they were diligently carried out and no new information has come to light since the investigations were undertaken six years ago," he said in a statement posted on the company's blog.

A pilot and another flight attendant named in the lawsuit have been removed from active flying duty, but a WestJet spokesperson refused to say when the decision to ground the two staff members was made.

In his blog post, Saretsky said the decision to ground the two was made "out of concern for their well-being and the continued safe operation of the airline."

The Calgary-based airline also issued a statement last week stressing that it is committed to "maintaining a safe and harassment-free environment for its employees and guests and takes its obligation in this respect with the utmost seriousness."

On Monday, it reiterated that it is taking the allegations "extremely seriously."

"We are offering additional support and resources to make it as easy as possible for anyone affected to make a report by working with the police in Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver and encouraging employees to contact these or their local police departments," said WestJet spokeswoman Lauren Stewart in an email to CBC News.

Told to keep quiet

Lewis alleges in her lawsuit that the airline's only response to her allegation was to change her work schedule so that she did not have to work with the pilot.

She says the airline told her to keep quiet about her allegations out of respect for the pilot's privacy and told her the pilot was no longer allowed to fly to Hawaii — a move that Lewis says protects him from prosecution.

"They just said, 'We're really sorry. We don't have the capability to fire him. It's your word against him. We're really sorry, and we are going to try to deal with this the best way we can,'" Lewis said.

Lewis's fight might have ended there, but then last year, another flight attendant who had heard her pose a question about sexual harassment during a staff training session reached out to her and alleged that she had been sexually assaulted by the same pilot in 2008.

"I thought my incident was more or less isolated," Lewis said. "Once she told me this information, I knew right then and there … what they had told me was a lie. All of the emails and the fights that I was having with them about how they had dealt with my incident was just a lie.

"They didn't handle it at all. They kept telling me, 'Well, it was my word against his.' Well, you have another word from another woman, at the very least."

Fired in January

Lewis said she demanded to see her employment record to determine whether WestJet took any action following her complaint. In January, after three months passed without a response, Lewis sent an email to the company, which contained a swear word, asking for her record. She was fired later that same day for insubordination.

WestJet plans to file a statement of defence in the next few weeks. The company says it has not heard of any other complaints since Lewis filed her suit.

But CBC News has learned that seven other women have reported similar accounts of sexual assault, some involving the same pilot, to the WestJet Professional Flight Attendants Association, an employee organization that has been working to unionize flight attendants at the airline.

With files from Kazi Stastna and Jennifer Barr

....after 5 days, and new daily revelations continuing to be make media headlines, the only smell that is being noticed is the one that seems to originating from the corporate head offices of WestJet.

Yes.... bad old AC is out to get you westjetters as usual....sigh.

:)





To assume any comment deriding AC's 'fans' for a gossipy chat on - OMG one of Gloria Allred's clients - comes from a 'westjetter' is rather revealing about the AC poster from the wetcoast ... since being a west coaster and a NON 'westjetter' it was a laugh out loud moment ...


thanks hr2

330 pilot -- this article was also in CBC's investigative section yesterday as well.


Oh, the irony!


Saint John woman will now only fly WestJet

From <Air Canada refuses to disclose sexual assault policy - New Brunswick - CBC News>

Well, the CTV had good go at WestJet yesterday. Extensive feature report about WJ pilot fatigue. The way they carried on, you'd think the pilots at every other carrier were habitually as fresh as a daisy.


This, or course, negates the current cause celebre; WestJet pilots are just too tired. (TIC)

Good Evening PacWest

I read this several times and the context is about a female passenger who was groped by another male passenger.

She reported it to the In Charge who in turn advised the Captain who in turn passed this on to the Company who in turn advised the police. The male passenger was arrested charged with a lesser offence and fined a $1000:00.

Should this ne treated as a separate thread? I am happy to see this was reported and the individual in question now has a record for this behavior,

So what did Team Red do wrong here?

Good Morning All:

A very thought provoking posting by Dagger on the AEF. So for the "select some" how would you react to this?

We'll deal with the outcomes when they are known, but if there are multiple cases against Pilot M, and there seem to be, then there is a likelihood that his behaviour was at the very least harassment. Whether that is sufficient to stand up to the legal standards for harassment is another thing. But I don't know who Pilot M is, wouldn't recognize him, so to this point, this is something largely known to those within the company.

I also find some of you too easily slip into the mode of blaming and shaming the woman, even suggesting that maybe she is a woman scorned, or someone who took an innocent advance and turned it into a feminist cause. Frankly, I wonder how some of you male pilots would react if a male captain grabbed you an throw you on your stomach on a bed and tried to pull down your pants. I bet you'd come out of that experience feeling pretty angry and or depressed at the victimization to which you'd been suggested. I doubt some of you would have the courage to admit a man preyed on you. It took a lot for the male victims of priest abuse to come forward, too.

WJ retains Ernst and Young for independent review of procedures:
WestJet sex assault allegations lead to review of procedures - British Columbia - CBC News

There is no good intro for me to write, so I'll just jump in.

WestJet had to be very, very careful with this situation. The court of public opinion was going to throw them under the bus no matter what they did.

Had WestJet fired the pilot, as Ms. Lewis suggests they should have, that pilot would have had grounds to sue WestJet for wrongful dismissal with the information we have at hand. A "he said, she said" situation, even under the umbrella of a sexual assault complaint is not grounds for dismissal. WestJet then would look like a hard-handed company, serving justice without evidence. We would then say they must be a horrible company to work for and consumers would want to see protection for the employees.

With WestJet not firing the pilot, they look like a company stuck in the 1950's...The "old boys club," as it were.

This is WestJet's version of the Kobayashi Maru; a no-win scenario.

But here is the thing. We don't know what evidence was presented to WestJet at the time of this complaint. All we know is that Ms. Lewis complained to WestJet and the police. The fact that Hawaii chose to issue an arrest warrant does not imply guilt on the part of the pilot. The fact that WestJet separated the pilot and flight attendant from working with one another could simply be the end result of an investigation which was not able to collect sufficient evidence to dismiss the pilot, so they elected the "safe" option of distancing their two employees - that's all they could do. Their hands may have been tied. The fact they refused to send the pilot to Hawaii - seriously? No company is going to do that and no employee would accept such a flight. Oh gee, I'm scheduled to Honolulu today...I've got hemorrhoids, sorry can't go. Be realistic.

The fact that Ms. Lewis was fired may have no bearing on this. It may. But maybe, just maybe WestJet had cause to fire her. Just because she made a sexual assault complaint does not give her a shield of protection from future wrong doing. We just don't know as we only have her word.

Now, more women are coming forward with complaints of sexual harassment and assault. If indeed it happens to be about the same pilot, then there are serious questions that need to be answered - and it should go all the way to the top. Even if its not the same pilot, there are questions to be answered.

Sexual Assault and Harassment is a horrible thing. But the accused is still innocent until proven guilty and deserves their day in court.

My post may come off as we being on the side of WestJet. I'm not. If they hid something under the carpet to protect a pilot then there are people inside the Campus who should go to jail. But at the same time I do not take a sexual assault complaint to be gospel. As hard as it is to relieve the pain, that is what our justice system requires. It's by no means fair to the victim, but it does protect the accused from false allegations.

When is the next court date ?

WestJet's side of the story: victim is far from perfect according to WJ:
WestJet denies Mandy Lewis's allegations about sex assault coverup - British Columbia - CBC News

A long way off. Civil actions involve examinations for discovery, among other things, and can take years before an actual trial.

Oh yawn...I have to keep reminding myself this is an aviation forum..
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