Virgin Atlantic gives his crew a choice of which uniform to wear to work “regardless of their gender, gender identity or gender expression”. The carrier said it wants to defend “the individuality” of its employees by allowing them to wear clothes designed by British designer Dame Vivienne Westwood, which “express how they identify or present themselves” in a major overhaul of its gender identity policy. .
Virgin Atlantic women employees were previously required to wear a red uniform, while men wore burgundy.
The company said the change makes it “the most inclusive airline in the sky”.
Cabin crew member Jaime Forsstroem said: “The updated gender identity policy is so important to me. As a non-binary person, I can be myself at work and have a choice of what uniform I wear.”
The airline said its existing “trans-inclusion” policies include allowing time off for gender-transition-related medical treatments, a choice of changing and showering facilities that “are in accordance with the gender with which a person identifies.” and co-creating a “personalized transition plan”.
Sir Richard Branson’s airline move is a UK first for the airline industry.
Virgin Atlantic is also introducing the ability to include pronouns on employee name badges and has updated its ticketing system to allow passport holders with gender neutral markings to use the title Mx and select gender code U or X when booking.
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The measures are part of the airline’s Be Yourself agenda.
Previous changes include removing the requirement for female cabin crew to wear makeup and removing a ban on visible tattoos for all cabin crew.
Airline chief commercial officer Juha Jarvinen said: “At Virgin Atlantic, we believe that anyone can take on the world, whoever they are.
“That’s why it’s so important that we empower our people to embrace their individuality and be their true selves at work.
“It is for that reason that we want to allow our people to wear the uniform that best suits them and how they identify our customers and ensure that they are addressed with their favorite pronouns.”
Commenting on the news about the uniforms, Michelle Visage, a judge at RuPaul’s Drag Race Allstars, said: “As a mother of a non-binary child and an ally of the LGBTQ+ community, these efforts by Virgin Atlantic to bring inclusiveness to the people are extremely important and personal to me.
“People feel empowered when they wear what represents them best, and this gender identity policy empowers people to embrace who they are and put themselves fully to work.”
It comes after British Airways dropped “ladies and gentlemen” from the onboard announcements to celebrate the “diversity and inclusion” of its customers.