Passenger says he felt 'harassed, unsafe' because of 'political statement'
Air Canada is reviewing a complaint from a Toronto passenger who reported observing a flight attendant wearing a pin shaped like Israel but coloured in Palestinian colours and featuring an image of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The passenger, author and businessman Israel Ellis, told the National Post in an email this week that the incident occurred aboard an Air Canada flight to Atlanta last week. He said the flight attendant, who was wearing a headscarf, wore the pin beneath her airline pin.
Ellis characterised the pin as a political statement that crossed into antisemitism. He told the National Post that there "is no place for political statements of any kind on a public airline, especially that which identifies clearly with a polarised issue used as a guise for antisemitism."
He added that "a pin depicting Palestine in the stead of Israel is a clear call for genocide."
Ellis reported feeling threatened during the encounter. He told the National Post that he felt "harassed, threatened, and unsafe in a situation … that should be providing comfort and security regardless of my identity."
With antisemitism on the rise, employers can't “bury their heads in the sand,” an expert previously told Canadian HR Reporter.
Air Canada's dress code
Air Canada acknowledged the complaint: "We are reviewing this matter. We will address it directly with the employee involved, as appropriate," Air Canada's manager of corporate communications, Peter Fitzpatrick, told the National Post in an email.
When asked about uniform policies, he explained that the airline maintains guidelines on the issue. "We have a policy for uniform staff that covers which pins and symbols are permissible," Fitzpatrick said, according to the report. "There is a finite list of pins that are accepted, none of them political, as I think you mean it. Instead think of something like a poppy."
The airline has not publicly disclosed whether the pin violated company policy or what disciplinary steps, if any, it plans to take.
When an employee’s clothing has strong messaging attached, HR should step in, Catherine Connelly, professor of human resources and management at McMaster University, previously told Canadian HR Reporter.
“An individual employee, maybe they’re wearing a T-shirt with a political slogan on it and maybe that’s not something you want with somebody who’s client-facing and so you would prefer that they don’t do that.”
Politics and workplace policy
“Although citizen involvement in politics is important and employees are entitled to freedom of speech and their political views and opinions, carefully and clearly drafted social media policies and codes of conduct allow an employer to effectively address political activities that may disrupt the workplace or negatively impact their business in a real and substantial way,” say Stephanie Yang Morris, labour and employment lawyer, and her colleagues at MLT Aikins in a post on their website.
Activities that may be subject to such a policy include:
- making political representations that could be interpreted to be made on behalf of the employer
- making political representations that harm the employer’s reputation or business
- making political contributions on behalf of an employer
- displaying, sending or soliciting political material during work hours or on the employer’s property
- engaging in political activities during work hours or on the employer’s property.
“Where policies are up-to-date, communications and training for managers, supervisors and employees on respectful workplace policies, social media policies and codes of conduct may serve as useful reminders to help mitigate any potential issues which may arise,” say Morris et al.
Employers face liability when racism and antisemitism bleed into the workplace, according to an expert.
