At Kuwait Airways, there was massive sexist harassment against women invited to job interviews in Spain.
Around 60 women and three men applied via social media for the position of flight attendant at Meccti. They were then invited to the Hotel Meliá Barajas at Madrid Airport on November 5, 2022 for the interview. Recruitment firm Meccti was looking for new employees for Kuwait Airways.
For men, the process ended in a few minutes. The airline does not hire foreign flight attendants, according to the justification. But recruitment day shouldn’t be happy for candidates either.
“You have a body like a rollercoaster”
One candidate was rejected even though she spoke perfect English. Reason: too old. And this, although the woman is only 37 years old. Another linguistic talent, a woman who speaks seven languages, was also sent home. Decision makers were bothered by a small scar on his eyebrow.
Another candidate was not suitable because she had liver spots on her face. But not enough, the chicane continued. “We don’t like her smile” or “Her body is like a roller coaster” are comments that have been made.
Renowned airlines as customers
Recruitment company Meccti – Middle East Cabin Crew Training International – was founded in 1977, as reported by Aerotelegraph.com. The company has its headquarters in Istanbul. Its customers include well-known airlines such as Etihad, Qatar Airways, Saudia and Gulf Air. According to the company, it operates in countries like Albania, India, Indonesia, Korea, Kosovo, Malaysia, Nepal, Romania, Thailand, Slovakia, Tunisia, Turkey, Czech Republic, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
The application process continued at some point. The remaining women were invited to enter the room in alphabetical order. “The first girl came out crying and told us that she was forced to take off almost all of her clothes, except her panties. It was her first interview. The others came out and said the same thing,” a candidate told El Diario.
“She pulled my dress down to my panties”
The applicant was first asked about her date of birth, weight, height and visible tattoos. Afterwards, a woman asked her to pull her dress up. “I pulled it up a little bit, just below my knees, and it pulled it down to my panties.” The applicant had to pull her top down to her waist and was only there in her bra. Reason: The woman wanted to see if she had scars, tattoos or birthmarks. “She kept turning around to get a look at my body.”
The other women told the same thing to “El Diario”. All the women involved found the process degrading. The women were then informed that they would have to pay a deposit of €1,900 if they were accepted for the job. The reason for this is that the money covers part of the costs of training, traveling to Kuwait and the first accommodation. “El Diario” and Aerotelegraph.com demanded a statement from Meccti. It was unsuccessful, although “El Diario” even contacted the Kuwaiti embassy in Spain.
Browsing account 20 minutes Time01/09/2023 11:53 | Act: 01/09/2023, 11:53 am