Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Anthony Bass blasted United Airlines after a flight attendant asked his pregnant wife to clean up her seating area after their two year old daughter spilled popcorn on the floor.
The flight attendant @united just made my 22 week pregnant wife traveling with a 5 year old and 2 year old get on her hands and knees to pick up the popcorn mess by my youngest daughter. Are you kidding me?!?! pic.twitter.com/vLYyLyJC54
— Anthony Bass (@AnthonyBass52) April 16, 2023
According to Bass, cleaning up after his kids isn’t his wife’s job – that’s for the cleaning crew.
The cleaning crew they hire!
— Anthony Bass (@AnthonyBass52) April 16, 2023
While I do wish airlines still paid as much attention to cleaning in-between flights as early in Covid, generally there are only a few minutes while passengers are deplaning and before the next flight begins boarding for cleaners to tidy up. You’ll often find that very little has been done, even when there are cleaners that are given that much time between flights.
The popcorn was an inflight snack. Judging by the photo this was a regional jet. It would have been sold by United and marketed as United (Express). But technically the flight attendant would have been employed by a regional carrier operating for United.
Here a roughly week-old photo of the family.
The family approves @BlueJays 👍🏻 pic.twitter.com/v0CEV29eRY
— Anthony Bass (@AnthonyBass52) April 10, 2023
Apparently given how high profile the complainer is, United is mollifying the situation and siding with the passengers over the flight crew, as relayed by Bass.
Thank you everyone for the support. United Airlines is taking care of matters with the flight attendant internally.
— Anthony Bass (@AnthonyBass52) April 17, 2023
Honestly though asking passengers to clean up after themselves doesn’t seem all that outrageous to me. Indeed it’s an important lesson to teach children, and the flight attendant shouldn’t even have to ask! And as a consequence for making a mess that’s far less significant than being banned from the airline and having your return ticket cancelled which happened to someone on another U.S. air carrier.
Kids can be messy. Sometimes it’s unavoidable, though in my view it’s not unreasonable for the carrier to want passengers to control and clean up after their children. I wonder if how you feel about this decision depends on whether you’re a parent or not, or whether you’re the parent of a current toddler or not?
(HT: @Coolrun84)
This would get no attention if she were the wife of a truck driver.
“…spilled popcorn on the corn.”
Gary! Slow down!
Coming next…an add on cleaning fee to your ticket.
Of course, United wants to put a lid on this story very quickly but the fact that an employee of any service company would even consider asking any passenger to clean up after children is amazing.
Yes, decent manners is to clean up after oneself and, better yet, not bring snacks that create a mess but, unless there is willful conduct to create a mess, it is just part of the business that airlines have to be willing to correct on the ground at the next flight.
This is just ridiculous… He just ended a person job over some spilled popcorn. All they had to do was just pick up the food from the floor. Just plump ignorant.
Having a woman almost 6 months pregnant crawl around to clean up the floor is stupid and cruel, if indeed that is what happened. Regarding being tangentially related to sports–that is irrelevant except to get publicity for the incident. (But then I ignore professional sports; on line to register for a triathlon a friendly fellow named Favre was behind me. Never heard of him, though he played in my city.)
In general, parents should clean up the mess their kids as the mess and the supplies available to them allow. Did your kid throw their snacks all over? You should pick it up. Did your kid accidentally spill a beverage in a restaurant? That’s going to require an employee with a mop.
But, flights attendants are not politeness police, and should absolutely not be telling customers to clean, even if the mess is of their (or their child’s) own making.
Imaging being fit enough to drag 2 kids through the airport, but not being responsible enough to be a parent….flight attendants aren’t their mother — if she was unable to clean up after her kids, she shouldn’t have been flying alone. The entitlement is amazing. If i dropped popcorn, not a single person would have to tell me to pick it up, because my mother raised me right!
I clean up after myself and kids. Of course, I also have taught my kids not to make messes in the first place.
I love how yet another selfish entitled person thinks that everyone else exists to clean up their messes. I’m sorry, but if you are not willing to pick up after your kids then DON’T HAVE ANY! This is the same parent who will allow their child to behave like a wild animal and do nothing about it while the child disrupts everyone around them.
This comes down to parents setting a poor example for their children, where they can make a mess in public and not have to clean it up.
Also depends on if they have a connecting flight they need get to. Lots at ‘play’ here if you will.
Also, 22-weeks pregnant? How is that relevant? Thats barely over halfway along. The majority of 22-weeks-pregnant women are working. It’s not a disability that prevents taking care of your existing children!
They’re flying economy which comes with a certain level of expected service, and it doesn’t include a maid. I think it was a reasonable request from the FA, but no level of request is going to change entitled behavior.
Entitled, multi millionaire jerk sport jock, probably didn’t graduate from college. My wife and I often picked up after our children if they made a mess and once they are five they can help clean up the mess to learn not to make a mess, just another spoiled super stat athlete , we shouldn’t be surprised.
And this my friends is truly what is wrong with society today. Children are being taught they can do anything and are “entitled.” You will not want to be associated with the adults these children become.
If the kid spilled a little popcorn by accident, the crew should help clean it up, that’s part of service. I was a waiter, and we certainly didn’t expect parents to clean up some spilled tortilla chips or a spilled beverage (though, they often offered). However, if the kid was tossing popcorn around and the parents were doing nothing to stop it, the crews response was the correct one.
Maybe you don’t give your kid something messy like popcorn on a flight?
30west,
YOU jumped to conclusions and are wrong
Anthony Bass played for Wayne State University where he went to college.
If the mother was at home, she obviously would clean up after her kids or teach them to clean up after themselves (how much cleaning up can a 2 year old do?)
The point is that she would have her own cleaning tools if she had to do the job herself. She doesn’t because she is a passenger. Crawling on her hands and knees at someone else’s request (or order) is beyond reasonable.
United has cleaning crews that have the tools to do the job.
The option for United is either to ban allowing kids to eat on their planes (see how that goes over) or ban kids.
Unless they do either of those, they will need to accept cleaning up after passengers – and not just kids.
The fact that United quickly said that they do not agree w/ the flight attendant’s actions shows that any reasonable person sees that the FA was way out of line.
I side with the flight attendant. So sick of the messes YOUR kid makes and expect someone else to clean it up. Don’t care who she’s the wife of. Your kid, your mess.
Disagree Gary – it is one thing to ask passengers to hand over trash and similar such items to minimize work for the cleaning crew. It is a separate issue, IMHO, so ask a passenger, especially a pregnant one, to get down and clean a mess off the floor. Hell I’ve dropped nuts and other items. I leave them there assuming they will be picked up by the cleaning crew and that is how this should have been handled. I’d have probably caused a scene and gotten walked off the plane because there is no way I’m taking a sky waitress’ order to get on the floor of a plane and clean something up.
Where’s my violin? 22 weeks is barely showing. What a dumb entitled family.
People are pigs. They leave their stuff in the boarding areas, all along the concourses and of course on the planes. Making a person clean up after their unruly kids should not be controversial. Is it be because she’s pregnant or who her husband is? Regardless. Have some class and humility about yourselves.
I can undertstand as a responsible parent she should police the area and clean up any debris left on or near their seats but to make her crawl around on the cabin floor of a plane is insane. Did the flight attendant even offer her a broom and dust shovel?
As an airline employee I see the potential for some gross exaggerations with the claim.
FA’s going through and asking for garbage is part of their job. It helps with the flip.
Could be wrong but I doubt there is a single FA that would risk their job by asking someone to get on their hands and knees to clean up the popcorn.
Mom was probably asked for trash and made a big deal out of it because of who she married.
God forbid you have to clean up after your own kids.
I have cleaned some planes that were disgusting because parents refuse to clean up after their children.
There’s more to the story, obviously.
Two thoughts on this: 1. While common courtesy would suggest that yes, we should pick up after ourselves, I find it odd/aggressive that the passenger was directly asked to pick up the mess. 2. A woman who is 22 weeks pregnant is in her second trimester/fifth month of pregnancy and may or may not be obviously “showing”. She also may or may not be dealing with nausea or any number of unpleasant symptoms that some of the men commenting don’t seem to appreciate. Without more info, it seems both sides are somewhat in the wrong, but to me mostly smacks of just another example of the decline of customer service in the not-so-friendly skies. I witness boorish passenger behavior, including adults making – and leaving – messes regularly, so it does seem quite unkind of the staff to target a mom (pregnant or not) traveling solo with young kids.
Clean up after your children or have them do it. Doesn’t matter if she’s the wife of a Pitcher, President or truck driver.
Correct your children now they are not in titled
@ Tim Dunn , you are wrong , I was guessing since many baseball players don’t graduate, neither did he a quick Google search shows he did not graduate, he went pro as a junior , not that any of that mattress.
Next I pointed out a FIVE old can help clean up their mess obviously a two year old can’t.
My wife worked full time as a nurse until a month before my kids were born , crawling up onto gurneys to do CPR compressions on people coding, sorry I guess MLB wives are more delicate than the rest of society’s pregnant women.
What a joke entitled millionaire husband wants the servers to clean up after them, not surprising at all.
I charged several people over the years for messes they left in my car after I gave them an Uber ride. Never once did I ask if they were pregnant or married to a famous person.
Your kid made a mess. Take care of it; preferably by teaching your kids to clean up after themselves when age appropriate. Until then, it’s your mess. Take care of it.
Pro tip: Just step and crush all the popcorn into small little pieces so it is impossible to pick up without a vacuum, then just say you cleaned it up as best as you could with what you have. Also, can we just get rid of flight attendants at this point? 1 security guard on each flight is basically all we need.
Entitled canadian douchebag with no worthwhile skills and no contribution to society.
REALLY DUDE
HOW ABOUT YOU CLEAN THE STADIUM SEAT THE NEXT TIME SOME DRUNK DROPS HIS HOT DOG AND SPILLS HIS BEER. CLEAN UP AFTER YOUR KIDS. THEY’RE FLIGHT ATTENDANTS, NOT JANITORS.
THEIR MAIN RESPONSIBILITY IS FOR YOU AND YOUR KIDS SAFETY, NOT CLEANING UP YOUR KIDS MESS!!!
When traveling from Paris to LAX when my twin sons were 2 1/2, I traveled with a small whisk broom for any cleanup emergencies. I was also a former flight attendant. Many ground stops do not have a cleaning crew come on board, it is only the FA’s who tidy the cabin.
Gentle reminder….she’s pregnant, not handicapped.
Your kids made the mess so clean it up!!! The world doesn’t revolve around you!!!! I don’t know what has happened to the people wha are so entitled!!!!
@Fred…I hate to burst your bubble, but Anthony Bass and his wife, Sydney Rae James are AMERICANS who happen to be living in Canada. So, before you start flinging uninformed comments, please do a 10-second google search. Her behavior and your comment are why Americans have the reputation around the world that we have. Flight attendants are not our servants and not everyone from outside the US is moron. Grow up.
Who does this? If you or your kids make a mess, you or your kids pick it up. Teachable moment here. If my kids made a mess or spilled something in public I’d ask the associate to hand them the mop or towel. They learned. And agree 22weeks is not I’m going into labor status.
I saw a comment where someone called the FA sky waitress, please scream out waitress when an aircraft is in distress and see if you will get any assistance.
In this case involving 2 small children with a single parent, compassion should have kicked in and cleaning crew notified that popcorn is all over the floor so be prepared so the next flight can be on time. But I also understand the entitlement element.
I saw a comment where someone called the FA sky waitress, please scream out waitress when an aircraft is in distress and see if you will get any assistance.
In this case involving 2 small children with a single parent, compassion should have kicked in and cleaning crew notified that popcorn is all over the floor so be prepared so the next flight can be on time. But I also understand the entitlement element.
If the child made a big mess I can understand asking someone to pick it up. A few dropped pieces, no. Part of the job of the flight crew is to straighten the plane, then the cleaning crew comes on to finish. If you don’t want messes on the plane, don’t offer snacks that make messes.
When my sons make messes I pick up what I can with my hands. Usually I’m told to forget it but I go ahead and get up what I can.
I’d be interested in what dialogue was used in “making” the wife clean.
I clean up after my kids where I can. At 6’5″ I cannot often get in hard-to-reach areas in coach. Judging by the trash I’ve seen elsewhere, I am not alone in not always getting all of the litter from my kids. I do make an effort, though. Reasonable people should. We live in a world with others, not just ourselves.
That said, it isn’t unexpected or unreasonable for customers to generate a modest amount of trash that may need to be picked up behind them. Restaurants have staff to clean tables between customers. Hotels have housekeepers to (at the very least these days) clean rooms between customers. I’m not going to pay for a plane seat and then be ordered to be a custodian.
It’s hard for me to believe an actual instruction was given from a F/A to the woman in question. Perhaps a pointed question was made, as in, “are you going to pick that up?” and the passenger felt shamed or pressured into doing it. I am not sure what my actual reaction would be to an order, “clean up that mess from the floor,” but it wouldn’t be pretty.
@William Jones “He just ended a person job over some spilled popcorn” if what has been said is true, that the F/A ordered a customer to clean the plane, or perhaps at the very least created an impression that cleaning was mandatory, then the F/A should be terminated from his or her role. Perhaps re-assigned not somewhere customer-facing.
Making a pregnant woman get on her hands and knees of a filthy airplane to clean up some spilled popcorn THAT THE AIRLINE ITSELF handed to her kids? Those of you defending the airline are batshit crazy.
@Joe:
“Gentle reminder….she’s pregnant, not handicapped.”
But but but that’s one and the same these days.
I just really wonder what actually happened here. Was the flight attendant just being sarcastic, and it was taken to heart? I find it really hard to believe that the mother was “ordered” to get on her hands and knees to clean… and that the mother actually complied with the order. This story is nothing but one of entitlement and publicity.
If a Google search is correct, that family earns millions of dollars a year…fly private with no worries about the mess. Problem solved !
United Express flight attendants clean the plane themselves. Only mainline flights have cleaning crews. I’m sure no one “made” her crawl on her hands and knees, but rather simply asked that she pick up after her own child. If it required the crawling, then the same would have been required of the flight attendant. How is that ok?
Parents are responsible for their children. If she saw that her child was making a mess with the food, then it was her responsibility to remove it from the child. But instead, she allowed her child to make the mess as she assumed that “the help” would clean it. Such an entitled assumption.