Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 25th April 2024 Issue no. 1111

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Airline Ebola scare puts cleaners' lives at risk, says one worker

According to Fox31 Denver, a Denver-based Frontier Airlines employee has accused the airline of putting employees at risk by panicking after an Ebola sufferer apparently flew on one of its airplanes.

"Frontier hasn`t done enough to train cleaners to get us the proper cleaning solution to clean the plane," the employee said. "I think I should be able to wear a mask to protect myself."

The report goes on to say that for years, the employee had boarded newly arrived planes to clean them and the cleaning team had always worn masks and gloves until one night last week when the airline allegedly changed its policy and said cleaning crews could not wear their usual protective masks "because the passengers would be freaked out by it."

Todd Lehmacher, Director of Corporate Communications for Frontier, issued the following statement on the matter via e-mail:

"The CDC has told us that everything we have done goes above and beyond and what we have done is consistent with their guidelines as posted on their website.

"We feel this aircraft is absolutely safe - our senior leaders along with myself have flown on the aircraft, sat in the seat occupied by the customer and have no reservations. The carpet is still to be removed, though again we have been told it is not necessary. We are going well above and beyond."

23rd October 2014