Compass Airlines FA Told A Television Station She Was Receiving Government Assistance

Former Compass Airlines flight attendant Kirsten Arianejad says the airline fired her after she told a television reporter she is "on food stamps." Arianejad said she had requested anonymity from the reporter from Arizona television station KARE, a request she says he honored, but she soon found herself out of work none the less.

Arianejad told the reporter that applying for government assistance was "a horrible feeling." She said flight attendants should be paid a "fair wage," and not have to go on food stamps to feed their families.

The station says Compass declined to comment on what it called a "personnel matter," but said its corporate procedures for termination of an employee "were correctly followed" in Arianejad's case.

The Association of Flight Attendants is holding informational pickets around the country protesting low wages for FA's. AFA spokesperson Bill McGlashen said some flight attendant salaries are as low as $12,000-$13,000 per year. Compass is currently in negotiations with the AFA.

FMI: www.afanet.org, www.compassairline.com