Flight Attendants’ Kidman Attack Has Etihad Airways Defending Nicole Kidman, Denying Firing Pregnant Women

According to a union that represents flight attendants, Nicole Kidman should not be a brand ambassador for Etihad Airways due to allegations of poor treatment of women. Nicole Kidman has yet to respond to these claims, but Etihad has written a detailed rebuttal which claims the state-owned carrier of United Arab Emirates is actually doing a better job than the global average.

In a related report by the Inquisitr, the reason the flight attendants’ Kidman criticism started was due to a new TV commercial called “Flying Reimagined,” which features the actress.

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) represents 25,000 flight attendants in the United States and they believe Nicole Kidman’s role as the U.N. Ambassador for women conflicts with her role in the Etihad ad.

“We urge you, on behalf of the women and girls that you spoke of so eloquently [on International Women’s Day], not to play a part in promoting Etihad Airways, a company that imposes abusive labor practices on its female employees and whose sole owner is a government that stands against the very world that you imagine,” the statement reads according to The Hollywood Reporter. “The APFA — a union that represents 25,000 flight attendants, including nearly 19,000 female crewmembers — has long been a leading voice on the issue of discriminatory labor practices in our industry. We would gladly welcome your voice to our effort.”

In the letter from the flight attendants, Kidman is asked to remember International Women’s Day, saying that “now is the time to step it up.” The APFA also noted that husbands living in the United Arab Emirates are allowed to beat their wives and can avoid punishment for marital rape. The flight attendants union claims that Etihad has fired women for becoming pregnant in addition to forcing their workers to live in confined compounds.

In regards to the allegations about firing pregnant women, Etihad has released a statement declaring that they “fully supports its cabin crew during and after their pregnancy.”

“When a cabin crew member informs Etihad of a pregnancy, she is provided with appropriate ground duties for the duration of their pregnancy. During this time, she remains fully compensated and fully engaged on the ground,” the statement from Etihad claims, according to Arabian Business.

“Cabin crew are also entitled to paid maternity leave if they have completed more than one year’s service. Our cabin crew are then able to return to their flying role at the end of their maternity leave period. The health and safety of our cabin crew remains paramount. Therefore, we follow the GCAA requirement that crew do not continue to fly while pregnant.”

Etihad Airways says it employs 24,000 staff members from more than 140 different nationalities, and in a recent independent employee opinion survey about 93 percent of the employees said they were proud to work for the company. As a comparison, their overall employee engagement score of 76 percent is claimed to be 18 percent better than the global average.

What do you think about Nicole Kidman’s support of Etihad Airways?