Alaska Airlines ordered to drop gendered uniforms after non-binary flight attendant’s lawsuit

A non-binary Alaska Airlines flight attendant is “relieved” that the company has been ordered to drop its gendered uniform rules.

The Washington state attorney general’s office has agreed a consent decree against Alaska Airlines, requiring it to remove gendered rules on flight attendant uniforms, it was announced Thursday (27 April).

It resolves a discrimination lawsuit filed by the ACLU on behalf of non-binary flight attendant Justin Wetherell, which argued that the guidelines were rooted in “sex stereotypes.”

Wetherell said that they had been forced to comply with the company’s gendered uniform and grooming policies, which conflicted with their gender identity and self-expression.

Following the several years-long lawsuit’s conclusion, in which Washington attorney general Bob Ferguson’s office ordered Alaska Airlines to remove the restrictions, Wetherell said they were “relieved” to put the process behind them.

“This took far more time than I expected and had a severe negative impact on my mental and emotional health. However, I would do it again in a heartbeat,” they added.

“This is the right thing for me, for Alaska Airlines, and for many other non-binary, transgender and gender non-conforming people. This victory sets the groundwork for other similarly affected individuals to have an easier time fixing discriminatory policies.”

As well as making modifications to its uniform policy, the decree requires the company to provide additional training to employees on federal and state protections for gender identity and expression.

It also ordered Alaska Airlines to pay legal fees of $70,000 to Wetherell and $40,000 to the ACLU.

Senior ACLU staff attorney Taryn Darling said that the legal win has “ensured non-binary and transgender employees in the state of Washington will feel safer, more comfortable and accepted at work”.

Darling added: “Alaska Airlines employees will no longer be subjected to rigid, oppressive uniform policies and all employees will benefit from additional training ensuring the workplace is respectful, inclusive and free from discrimination.

“We thank Justin for the years they spent getting Alaska Airlines to do the right thing.”

The initial complaint was filed by Wetherell in 2020 to the Washington State Human Rights Commission, which concluded its review in 2022.

As part of its conclusion, it issued a reasonable cause finding of discrimination against the airline company, as well as another complaint filed by the Washington State attorney general.

PinkNews has contacted Alaska Airlines for comment.