Virgin Atlantic allows staff to wear any uniform they feel comfortable in
In order to become « the most inclusive airline in the sky », Britain’s Virgin Atlantic on Wednesday dropped rules requiring its staff to wear gender-specific uniforms. This means male staff can now wear red skirts to work.
The company, which is owned by billionaire Richard Branson, has announced that it will update its gender identity policies to « champion of individuality », allowing its employees to wear clothing that « expresses how they identify themselves. »
According to the airline’s press release, staff are now free to choose any company-approved uniform, “regardless of their sex, gender identity or gender expression”. The uniforms were created for Virgin by British designer Dame Vivienne Westwood.
The updated policies also provide the option for Virgin Atlantic staff and passengers to wear pronominal badges to ensure they are treated with their gender identity in mind.
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The airline’s ticketing systems will also allow people with a gender-neutral marker in the passport to use the gender codes « U » or « X » on their reservation, as well as the gender-neutral title « Mx ». This feature, however, is only available in a handful of countries, including the United States, India, and Pakistan.
Additionally, Virgin Atlantic has updated its “trans inclusion policies” allowing members of this community time off for medical treatment related to gender transition and allowing them to choose locker rooms and showers.
This decision has however been criticized by some members of the public who view the decision as controversial or even see it’s like « woke madness. »
The change in Virgin Atlantic’s policies comes after major US airlines agreed in July to update their systems by 2024 to allow customers to buy tickets with a « X » gender marker, which means that the passenger does not consider himself to be either a man or a woman.
