Working at an airport means finding a balance between following strict rules to maintain order while also relying on common sense when needed. This can sometimes be difficult to do, especially when passengers start to feel overly entitled.
One redditor, an airport employee, turned to the internet for a verdict about how she handled a family with kids. The worker denied them priority when dropping off their bags because that particular airline did not have a policy to prioritize children. This, however, caused a spot of drama in the queue. Read on for the full story and to see what other internet users had to say about the entire situation.
The author of the post, who preferred to stay anonymous, was kind enough to answer Bored Panda's questions about entitled passengers and what it's like to work at an airport. You'll find our full interview with her below.
Things can get quite chaotic at the baggage drop-off point, especially if the airport is understaffed
Image credits: YuriArcursPeopleimages (not the actual photo)
One employee explained why she denied priority access to a family with kids, starting a discussion online
Image credits: LightFieldStudios (not the actual photo)
The employee thought that the family was behaving in a very entitled way
The author of the post shared how she followed the rules to the letter. Priority access, at the specific airline that the OP was helping at the time, was reserved only for business class passengers, as well as people with reduced mobility who needed wheelchair assistance.
Overwhelmed with work, the airport employee ignored the family with kids who thought that they’d get priority when dropping off their bags. A small conflict ensued after the airport employee told them that they couldn’t cut the line.
“I'm sick and tired of families DEMANDING to be serviced first. Your life choices don't entitle you to special rights!” the redditor vented on the r/AITAH subreddit. She stressed the fact that this all took place at bag drop-off, not while boarding.
Many readers supported what the worker had done and how she shut down the passengers' entitled behavior. However, some people were unsure if she handled the situation in the best possible way.
Some redditors pointed out that the OP could have prevented the entire drama by taking a moment to communicate to the family that they didn’t have priority when she saw that they were queuing up in the wrong lane. We’d love to hear what you Pandas think about the entire situation, so feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
"They get away with such behavior once or twice so they find it acceptable"
We were curious what the airport employee's first reaction to the family with children was. "My first reaction was to ignore them, as I had seen my colleague earlier explaining they had no priority," she told Bored Panda.
"I saw them moving from the middle of our queue to the queue of another airline: they lifted the ribbon that separated the two lines, so I knew it was deliberate," she said.
"I can't think of a reason why passengers feel entitled at all, but in my experience, they get away with such behavior once or twice so they find it acceptable," the author of the post shared her thoughts with Bored Panda.
"Maybe they think they're smarter than everyone else? I don't really understand the logic behind entitlement overall."
Meanwhile, Bored Panda wanted to hear what advice the employee would give anyone hoping to start working at an airport. She explained what some of the issues are.
"It's normally a good job and I enjoy it a lot but the industry suffers from understaffing and we don't get paid enough for the responsibilities we have," she warned.
"But if someone is focused and likes to interact with people from all around the world, it's a good job. It's mentally stimulating and gives you a chance to meet new cultures and behaviors but might end up creating stereotypes," the OP told us.
"It also shows you how common some problems and behaviors are," she said that, whether for good or ill, this is something that shows just how similar people from all around the world are.
"My advice is to be ready to work hard and be very patient. You'll meet new people and make new friends and you will surely never be bored. But be prepared to get tired a lot," the redditor said.
"Also never let anyone take advantage of your kindness. That's the biggest challenge. With frequent holidays it can be worked through," she said that people skills, lots of patience, focus, and having an open mind are essential.
Good communication and problem-solving skills are essential for airport staff
According to PPR, one of the UK's leading technical recruitment businesses, some of the most important qualities for airport ground staff include the ability to plan and organize well, as well as top-notch soft skills. This is something to keep in mind if you ever plan to work at an airport.
The latter are things like flexibility, the ability to solve problems, teamwork, interpersonal skills, and a sense of responsibility. Meanwhile, good communication may be the most important soft skill to have in this workplace environment.
“As a member of airport ground staff, you will likely communicate through various methods including, internal intercoms, telephone systems, e-mail, face-to-face, and various other specialist computer systems. Communicating within an airport environment will also include inputting the correct information regarding passenger and luggage details and completing any documentation which may be required,” PPR explains exactly why this is so essential.
Staying calm under pressure and handling customer complaints well are also invaluable
Meanwhile, the Aviation Career Hub stresses the importance of customer service skills for those aspiring to become passenger check-in officers.
On top of that, employers value workers who have excellent communication, organization, and problem-solving skills, as well as the ability to stay calm under pressure. The latter is especially useful in situations where you have to deal with customer complaints.
How workers handle passengers is important because it affects the reputation of both the airport and the airline. People who get treated poorly may choose to take their business elsewhere or file a complaint.
The airline Ryanair, well-known for its cheap flights and sometimes questionable customer service, has recently seen a lot of negative coverage in the news for how it treated its customers. The BBC reported how a family was forced to pay 165 pounds to check in at the airport, even though they’d done so before. Meanwhile, the airline also charged an elderly couple 110 pounds to print their tickets at the airport.
Some internet users were fully on the airport employee's side. Here's what they said
Other readers, however, thought that the situation wasn't as clear-cut as it might seem
