Ridiculous Requests (Part 1)
November 8th 2006 02:45
On a normal day at work the hostie will be bombarded with ridiculous requests. The majority of these originate from first and business class passengers. I suppose, since they are paying three to five times as much as people in cattle class, they think that gives them the privilege to ask for anything and everything.
In business class, it isn’t unusual for passengers to urgently summon hosties, merely to ask for a magazine. On my old airline the magazines racks are located at the front and back of the business class cabin. That means a passenger only has to walk, at most, a few metres in order to obtain a magazine. Even if the selection of magazines is directly in front or behind them, irritating passengers still ask hosties to fetch them a copy of ‘OK’ or ‘Time’. GRRRRRR!
Getting hosties to put bags the size and weight of a set of Encyclopaedia Britannica in the overhead stowage compartments is another common request. People assume it’s in the hostie’s job description to lift heavy luggage for passengers, and some just plonk their bags down in the middle of the aisle, waiting for a hostie to come along and place it in stowage. I never had a problem with helping elderly people or mothers with babies put their bags away. However, I had zero tolerance for middle-aged, able-bodied men who expected me- a female, and a petite one at that- to put a briefcase or even a man-bag in an overhead compartment for them.
Other frequent outrageous requests from passengers include asking hosties to; fasten their seatbelts, pick up things they’ve dropped on the floor (eg. newspaper, headset), change air-conditioning control dials directly above their seat, throw a collection of rubbish away for them, make them a cocktail during boarding, etc.etc.
Am I overreacting? Do you think passengers should expect hosties to be their personal slave?
In business class, it isn’t unusual for passengers to urgently summon hosties, merely to ask for a magazine. On my old airline the magazines racks are located at the front and back of the business class cabin. That means a passenger only has to walk, at most, a few metres in order to obtain a magazine. Even if the selection of magazines is directly in front or behind them, irritating passengers still ask hosties to fetch them a copy of ‘OK’ or ‘Time’. GRRRRRR!
Getting hosties to put bags the size and weight of a set of Encyclopaedia Britannica in the overhead stowage compartments is another common request. People assume it’s in the hostie’s job description to lift heavy luggage for passengers, and some just plonk their bags down in the middle of the aisle, waiting for a hostie to come along and place it in stowage. I never had a problem with helping elderly people or mothers with babies put their bags away. However, I had zero tolerance for middle-aged, able-bodied men who expected me- a female, and a petite one at that- to put a briefcase or even a man-bag in an overhead compartment for them.
Other frequent outrageous requests from passengers include asking hosties to; fasten their seatbelts, pick up things they’ve dropped on the floor (eg. newspaper, headset), change air-conditioning control dials directly above their seat, throw a collection of rubbish away for them, make them a cocktail during boarding, etc.etc.
Am I overreacting? Do you think passengers should expect hosties to be their personal slave?
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Comment by Nina
Comment by Judy
Ex-Hostie