Most of us have read about Armando Alvarez, vice president of Best Buy, the $47 billion-a-year electronics retailer, and his troubles with United Airlines. In late October, a United gate agent revoked Alvarez’s First Class upgrade, “purchased” with miles from his frequent flier account.
According to Alvarez, the United gate agent who pulled his upgrade told him he was dressed too casually to sit in first class.
Alvarez was wearing a Puma track training suit, and leather sneakers. This was no cheap sweatsuit. The typical Puma warm-up retails for about $150.
Alvarez is a United Airlines Red Carpet Club member and an elite level frequent flier with the airline.
When I saw Alvarez interviewed, I kept thinking about Kyla Ebbert and the trouble she had with Southwest Airlines about her clothing. Ebbert was the 23-year-old whose clothing Southwest called “offensive.” Yet Southwest permitted her to fly on their plane after she pulled down her skirt just a bit, and pulled up her top a tad. How offensive could it have been?
With Alvarez, it was alright if he flew in economy, just not first class. Do you believe that?
I fly thousands of miles a year, have elite frequent flier status, and enough frequent flier miles that I almost always fly first class, via a free upgrade, or one I’ve purchased with miles. If you think the typical first class passenger dresses up, let me assure you, they don’t.
When I fly, I usually wear cross trainers, jeans with leather belt, a tennis/golf shirt, photographer’s vest, warm-up jacket, and a Nikon baseball cap. I flew to Hawaii last year, on United in first class, dressed that way. In fact, I haven’t dressed differently for flying in years on United, Delta, US Airways, Alaskan, Hawaiian, Continental, or American Airlines. My clothes are always neat, clean, no holes, and no fraying cloth. I’ve never been refused use of a free or miles upgrade, or boarding, due to my clothing or general appearance.
I’d like to know what the United gate agent was thinking about Alvarez’s outfit, or the Southwest employees who decided Ebbert was dressed offensively. For that matter, what’s with having a “dress code” in the first place. This isn’t the ‘50s. It’s the 21st century. Isn’t it?
Actually, I do think there is room for some clothing restrictions.
United, in their Contract of Carriage, prohibits boarding their planes barefoot. Southwest’s Contract of Carriage says that Southwest can prohibit passengers from boarding “whose clothing is lewd, obscene, or patently offensive.”
United’s prohibition of barefoot passengers is actually a safety issue. In the event of an emergency, a lack of shoes can really put a passenger at risk.
On the other hand, Southwest’s “dress code” is problematical. It’s not what it says so much, as who’s judging and enforcing the “code.” If one wanted to say Ebbert’s clothing was somewhat provocative, I probably wouldn’t disagree, however, to call her clothing lewd, obscene or offensive boggles my imagination.
At the least, United and Southwest need to properly train their employees to properly enforce their dress code for “paying”passengers. United employees must understand they have no dress code except the prohibition of bare feet.
Moreover, United can’t hide behind statements like “It was really Air Wisconsin which made the mistake revoking Mr. Alvarez’s upgrade.” The gate agent might get an Air Wisconsin paycheck, but he was wearing a United uniform, revoked a United boarding pass to board an airplane clearly marked United. The agent was acting on behalf of United.
For Southwest, since they’ve decided to have a dress code, they must train their employees to know what lewd, obscene or offensive clothing actually looks like. Maybe they can show all their employees precise examples; yes to mini skirts and a sweater over a tank top, but no to “see-throughs” and men’s sleeveless underwear tops worn as a shirt (A pet peeve of mine).
My 93-year-old father has never flown on an airplane, domestic or international, without wearing a jacket and tie, but he’s from a generation which still goes to the corner pizza parlor wearing a sports jacket.
Today’s society dresses casually. While I personally think there are still times it makes sense to dress up, and it’s fun to do so, I think wearing casual clothing while flying is the most sensible way to travel.
A word of warning to female airline passengers wearing skirts or dresses without hosiery on their legs. If you have to go down one of those emergency evacuation ramps, you’ll pay dearly for that decision with severe friction burns. I suggest slacks.
After many years working in corporate America as a chemical engineer, executive and eventually CFO of a multinational manufacturer, Ned founded a tech consulting company and later restarted NSL Photography, his photography business. Before entering the corporate world, Ned worked as a Public Health Engineer for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. As a well known corporate, travel and wildlife photographer, Ned travels the world writing about travel and photography, as well as running photography workshops, seminars and photowalks. Visit Ned’s Photography Blog and Galleries.
