American Flight Attendants Lose Age Bias Suit Over Covid Buyouts

Flight attendants accusing American Airlines Inc. of age discrimination in two voluntary buyout programs during the Covid-19 pandemic lost their lawsuit when a California federal judge said they hadn’t shown how they were constructively discharged in connection with the programs.

The flight attendants said their working conditions during the early months of the pandemic—in which the company allegedly denied requests for leave, discouraged them from wearing masks and personal protective equipment, and misled them about subsequent retirement opportunities—qualified as an adverse employment action that forced them into an unfavorable retirement program. Judge Beth Labson Freeman disagreed Wednesday, saying these conditions, ...