British Airways has suspended two crew members for making cruel remarks about a colleague’s weight behind her back.
“This was repugnant bullying,” an inside source told The Sun of the incident.
The culprits had reportedly ridiculed the unidentified 210-pound air hostess in a WhatsApp group she was not a part of.
These mean comments were brought to the 20-something victim’s attention by a concerned coworker, according to the Sun, which reported that the devastated woman was scared to return to work after reading them.
“The poor victim of the merciless fat jokes has been left utterly bereft,” the source described. “She had no idea her colleagues had such disdain for her.”
They continued, “The cruel comments left her scared to leave the house. She felt victimized.”
The woman’s colleague subsequently brought the jibes to the attention of BA management, who suspended the coworkers responsible and launched a probe into the incident.
“We have a zero-tolerance approach to bullying and always fully investigate any allegations brought to our attention,” airline representatives said in a statement.
If found guilty, the crew members in question could be put on permanent leave while five other members of the WhatsApp group are also under scrutiny.
BA guidelines stipulate that crewmembers need to be able to reach at least 6ft7 inches so they can perform their duties, which include opening aircraft doors and reaching into overhead bins.
“In order to be able to meet the reach requirement you likely need to be at least 1.575m in height,” the company website reads. “We will measure your diagonal reach, as this is used to manually release an evacuation slide in an emergency.”
However, there is nothing to suggest a maximum weight limit for employees provided they can perform all the necessary tasks.
