The Occupational Health and Safety of Flight Attendants

Abstract

In order to perform safety-critical roles in emergency situations, flight attendants should meet minimum health standards and not be impaired by factors such as fatigue. In addition, the unique occupational and environmental characteristics of flight attendant employment may have consequential occupational health and safety implications, including radiation exposure, cancer, mental ill-health, musculoskeletal injury, reproductive disorders, and symptoms from cabin air contamination. The respective roles of governments and employers in managing these are controversial. A structured literature review was undertaken to identify key themes for promoting a future agenda for flight attendant health and safety. Recommendations include breast cancer health promotion, implementation of Fatigue Risk Management Systems, standardization of data collection on radiation exposure and health outcomes, and more coordinated approaches to occupational health and safety risk management. Research is ongoing into cabin air contamination incidents, cancer, and fatigue as health and safety concerns. Concerns are raised that statutory medical certification for flight attendants will not benefit either flight safety or occupational health.

Analysis of labour risks in the Spanish industrial aerospace sector

“…), R15 (Exposure to electrical contact), R14 (Exposure to thermal contact heat strain) and R18 (Explosions and fires). This observation is in line with the concern that those working in the aerospace sector, and in aircraft maintenance and passenger control, may be exposed to ionising radiation (essentially cosmic radiation and industrial X radiation) (Garcia and Gartman 1998, Patterson and Rayman 1998, Griffiths and Powell 2012. The SS vs. SIAS comparison revealed a high deviation value for R17 (AR =14.9), which occurred at a higher frequency than R16 (Exposure to chemical substances) and R10 (Projections of fragments or particles), underscoring the importance of this risk in the Services Subsector.…”

“…Several authors have highlighted the reduction in the thickness of the atmospheric gas layer and the attendant risk posed by "cosmic" ionising radiation during flight phases (Seigneuric 1991, INSHT NTP-728, Gaona 2010, which has led to most companies classifying air crews as professionally exposed workers (Griffiths and Powell 2012).…”

Erratum to: Weigl, M., Müller, A., Hornung, S., Leidenberger, M., Heiden, B.: Job resources and work engagement: the contributing role of selection, optimization, and compensation strategies at work

“…Thus, investigating SOC use in occupations with age-sensitive demands is important because such professions pose significant physical or psycho-motor demands which pose a substantial burden for individual capacities (abraham and Hansson 1995). To this end, we studied flight attendants, whose in-flight work environment contains many age-sensitive job demands such as work overload, circadian rhythm disruption, high information load, and intense demands for the musculoskeletal system (Griffiths and Powell 2012).…”

“…Our investigation examines flight attendants, whose work environment comprises many challenging and age sensitive work conditions like work overload, circadian rhythm disruption, emotional and customer-related stressors, high information load, and intense demands for the musculoskeletal system (Griffiths and Powell 2012;Grajewski et al 2003). To inform occupational health interventions, further investigations are necessary to address the interplay of the work environment of flight crew personnel and factors that are beneficial to maintain well-being, performance, and capabilities (Griffiths and Powell 2012).…”

“…To inform occupational health interventions, further investigations are necessary to address the interplay of the work environment of flight crew personnel and factors that are beneficial to maintain well-being, performance, and capabilities (Griffiths and Powell 2012).…”