The story of workplace injustice is unfortunately all too familiar, but what happened to one employee at a major airline subsidiary takes the concept to a whole new level. From unfair wages to outright threats of termination for seeking medical care, this account reveals the troubling conditions many employees endure in industries that rely heavily on physical labor and long hours.
Working for what we’ll call “United Blairlines,” the employee was part of a newly created subsidiary company under the main airline brand. This smaller operation hired and trained staff to manage aircraft services—like loading luggage, refilling water tanks, and pushing planes out—but paid them significantly less than their counterparts at other locations. While workers elsewhere earned over $20 per hour, this individual was compensated just $10.25 for doing similar—if not more demanding—work. The disparity wasn’t just about pay; it reflected a broader disregard for the people responsible for ensuring flights took off safely.
Compounding the issue, most employees had to juggle two or three jobs just to afford rent. Their only real incentive to stay was access to benefits, including free flights anywhere in the country. For many, it was a trade-off between financial stability and personal well-being.
The situation worsened with the presence of a particularly toxic manager named Jim. After experiencing severe stomach pain due to job-related stress—so intense that it caused temporary intestinal dysfunction—the employee was hospitalized and given a doctor’s note excusing him from work for two days. Upon returning, he shared the note with Jim’s supervisor, avoiding direct contact with Jim whenever possible.
During a hectic morning shift where five planes needed to be prepped within an hour by a team of only five people, Jim pulled the worker into his office and accused him of poor attendance. Despite presenting the hospital documentation, which should have protected him under company policy and union rules, Jim responded with a chilling threat: “I’m going to fire you.”
When reminded that a formal warning was required before termination, Jim simply dismissed the rule, claiming he would issue the warning immediately and follow through on firing the employee after returning from vacation the next week. Faced with such blatant disregard for protocol and basic decency, the worker made a bold decision—he quit on the spot.
His coworkers, already overwhelmed by the workload, supported his choice entirely. As he walked out at 4 a.m., leaving behind the chaos he knew would ensue, he later received multiple calls and a text from Jim asking where he was. He responded with calm defiance: “You fired me, so why would I keep working for you?”
Jim never replied.
Later that morning, HR, the union representative, and the general manager all reached out, acknowledging that Jim had acted improperly and offering the opportunity to return. But the relief of walking away was too powerful to ignore. The weight of quitting felt like liberation.
Jim didn’t face immediate consequences, despite further incidents—including instructing an injured employee with a doctor’s note to perform strenuous labor. That coworker ended up tearing his shoulder and requiring surgery. Instead of being fired, Jim was “promoted” to oversee ticketing operations, removing him from manual labor supervision but keeping him employed.
To this day, Jim remains with the company, while the injured coworker continues to suffer the lasting effects of that decision.
