Harvard Gazette | 2020 New paper looks at sexual harassment of flight crews

In the latest paper from the Harvard Chan Sustainability and Health Initiative for Netpositive Enterprise (SHINE) program titled “Work, Gender, and Sexual Harassment on the Frontlines of Commercial Travel: A Cross-Sectional Study of Flight Crew Well-Being,” researchers examined the scale and scope of experience of sexual harassment at work among male and female flight attendants. The paper was published in The International Journal of Aerospace Psychology and lead by researchers…

HSPH News | Flight attendants face significant amount of sexual harassment on the job

Sexual harassment appears to be a significant and underreported problem among both female and male flight attendants, according to a new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study, which was published August 17, 2020 in the International Journal of Aerospace Psychology, looked at data from 8,700 flight attendants from North America (U.S. and Canada) and 1,887 from the United Kingdom who took part in the Flight Attendant…

New Paper on Work, Gender, and Sexual Harassment in Commercial Air Travel

In the latest paper titled Work, Gender, and Sexual Harassment on the Frontlines of Commercial Travel: A Cross-Sectional Study of Flight Crew Well-Being in Aerospace Psychology, researchers Dorota Weziak-Białowolska, Piotr Białowolski, Irina Mordukhovich and Eileen McNeely examined the scale and scope of experience of sexual harassment at work among male and female flight attendants. The data the research team examined represented the perception and prevalence of sexual harassment related to…

Philadelphia Inquirer | ‘They’re hiding something’: Southwest flight attendant speaks out about severe reactions to uniforms

s Nov. 20, 2018, and she had a meeting with Southwest Airlines, where she had worked as a flight attendant for two decades. But this was no routine trip. Osborne was trying to discover what kind of chemicals were in her uniform – which she says caused her to break out in a rash, irritated her eyes and nose, and left her with scarring. Months after the symptoms first appeared,…

New Paper on Changes in Passenger Heart Rate and Rhythm During a Simulated Commercial Flight

A new paper titled, Changes in Heart Rate and Rhythm During a Crossover Study of Simulated Commercial Flight in Older and Vulnerable Participants, has just been published Frontiers of Physiology.  The authors found that among passengers that are typical of elderly flyers (an increasingly common demographic of both flyers and flight crew – flight attendants and pilots) and who would have been cleared to fly without supplemental oxygen or any other…

CNN | At 19 hours, it’s the world’s longest flight. But how will the human body cope?

Regular nonstop flights between the east coast of Australia and London or New York could soon become a reality — and in preparation, Australian airline Qantas has announced the first of three test flights will takeoff this Friday. The aim? To see how the human body copes with 19-20 solid hours of air travel. This inaugural test flight, operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, departs New York on October 18 and is due to arrive…

Vox | Flight attendants keep getting sick. It’s likely because of their uniforms.

Rashes, blisters, and hair loss have all been reported. So has vomiting, migraines, and shortness of breath. All of these — and more — are symptoms reported by flight attendants after their airlines got new uniforms. But no one knows why. Delta is the latest airline to have flight attendants report health issues possibly related to their uniforms, and employees at the airline filed a lawsuit in May against the…

New Paper on the Impact of Workplace Harassment on Health

Workplace harassment and abuse, especially against women, occur with great frequency worldwide. Estimates suggest that as many as 50% of U.S. women experience sexual harassment during their working lives, but only a minority report it. Studies indicate that workplace abuse and stress are related to poorer mental health, including sleep disorders, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and symptoms, and psychological distress.  Exposure to workplace stress has also been associated with increased…

New paper on legacy health effects among never smokers exposed to occupational secondhand smoke

A new study on the effects of secondhand smoke on never smokers has just been published by SHINE Harvard researchers.  The study reports associations between legacy secondhand tobacco smoke (SHTS) exposure going back decades and several severe cardiovascular and respiratory outcomes, including MI, PAD, and repeated pneumonia.  The researchers found no evidence of positive associations between SHTS and any cancer, but observed associations between SHTS and cardiac outcomes, including myocardial infarction (OR =…

The Guardian | ‘Chemical burns’: Delta flight attendants say new uniforms cause rashes

Delta flight attendants are complaining that a new set of uniforms introduced by the airline are still causing skin rashes and worse almost a year after the company introduced them. And while the airline says it is addressing the issue, some flight attendants say they fear retaliation for complaining. Last May, Delta unveiled a new set of slick purple uniforms designed by Bravo’s Project Runway star Zac Posen and manufactured…