El Al flight attendants upset over new rule making them wear high heels

High heels.
(Image credit: iStock)

Flight attendants for Israel's El Al Airlines are upset over a new directive from management saying that they must wear high heel shoes on board every flight until all passengers have been seated.

So far, 200 flight attendants have signed a petition against the carrier's decision, with one anonymous employee telling the Ynet news site, "It is unbelievable how much an employer can be disconnected from his workers." Not only are heels uncomfortable shoes, some cabin staff say, they can also become a safety hazard during an emergency. The news was announced last week in an email sent to employees, and it replaces the old rule that cabin staff had to only wear high heels as part of their uniform when they arrived at airports and when they walked past passengers waiting to board. Once the staff was on the plane, they were able to switch to more comfortable footwear.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.