British Airways introduces gender neutral greetings
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">British Airways are adopting new tactics to make their journeys more inclusive to all travellers. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The UK airline giant is joining a growing list of travel companies that are implementing more gender-neutral language, by ditching the traditional "ladies and gentlemen" greeting.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">While the move falls in line with an industry-wide global trend, the decision is also due to a change in the airline’s clientele, with the carrier reporting more children onboard since COVID-19 restrictions have been lessened. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">According to the </span><a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2021/10/09/hello-passengers-inclusive-welcome-announcement/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Telegraph</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, the new policies would adhere to changing social norms, as well as make younger customers feel more included. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The airline is just one of many to make the important change. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Japan Airlines was one of the first major carriers to ditch the traditional “ladies and gentlemen” titles for inflight announcements back in 2020. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">German carrier Lufthansa also changed their language to a more inclusive tone in July, as they pledged their commitment to diversity. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Qantas has also made strides towards inclusivity in 2018, as they changed the use of “mother and father” to “parents” on all flights to include parents of different sexualities. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">At the time, the airline introduced a new staff booklet highlighting language geared towards the</span> <a href="https://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-releases-video-to-celebrate-the-spirit-of-australia/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Spirit of Inclusion"</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">which advised against using language that could be deemed offensive to the LGBTQ+ community. </span></p>
<p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image credit: Shutterstock</span></em></p>
