Freedom above the clouds: Air Baltic flight attendants do not have to submit to strict appearance rules.
Tattoos, piercings or conspicuous haircuts may be openly displayed by Air Baltic flight attendants in the future. Latvia's state-owned airline has now announced that it will grant flight staff more freedom in this respect. The strict dress codes have had their day, they say. Starting this week, flight attendants are allowed to show their tattoos and piercings and do not have to change conspicuous haircuts.
Air Baltic sees this as proof that it has a “diverse” and “inclusive” attitude towards its staff. The cockpit crew are also allowed to show tattoos and piercings, although this will probably be noticed less often. Air Baltic employs a total of 1,900 people, 560 of them as cabin crew. Currently, 40 employees are being sought for vacant positions.
In May, the British airline Virgin Atlantic announced that flight attendants were allowed to display tattoos openly. Before that, they had to be covered up. However, the vast majority of other airlines still require this. Some others, such as the Korean airline Aero K, use gender-neutral clothing for flight staff.
The problems of finding staff could also have an impact in this respect. Potential employees are sometimes deterred by the strict dress codes and regulations regarding hair, tattoos and body jewellery. It could be that airlines that are more open in this respect will now quickly find the urgently needed staff.
