Two private flight attendants who worked for the co-founder of the iconic home improvement retailer The Home Depot say they quit their jobs because they were overworked while covering for ‘inept’ coworkers who only kept their jobs because they were involved in romantic relationships with their bosses.
In an explosive lawsuit filed in an Atlanta district court last week, Adele Pearson and Samantha Carlisle describe how they sometimes worked 26 days per month, racking up around 90 hours of work time per week while working for AMBFO—the Arthur M. Blank Family Office.
Arthur M. Blank, 82, co-founded Home Depot in 1978, turning it into the largest home improvement retailer in the United States.
Originally from Queens, New York City, Blank has turned Atlanta into his home and has made significant investments in Georgia. In 2002, Blank purchased the NFL team, the Atlanta Falcons, and in the years since, he has made several other sports ownership purchases in the area.
Blank is estimated to have a net worth of around $7 billion, and he owns two private jets through his AMBFO business for use by Blank, his family members, and affiliated companies.
In 2021, Pearson joined AMBFO as its lead flight attendant, earning as much as $175,000 per year by the time she left the company in 2024. She says her move was prompted by being overworked and not being paid overtime.
Pearson and Carlisle were responsible for providing inflight service, creating menus for each flight, shopping for necessary provisions, performing personal errands for the Blank family, selecting hotels and restaurants, and booking travel-related activities.
Pearson estimates that all of these duties required five hours of work before they even arrived at the hangar. The flight attendants would then get to the hangar at least two hours before departure and spend around an hour and a half after each flight cleaning the plane and completing other post-flight activities.
Even when they were away from Atlanta, Pearson and Carlisle were allegedly required to assist the Blank family with ministerial tasks, and the pair were frequently required to remain ‘on call’ for last-minute trips.
During these ‘on call’ periods, the flight attendants had to stay within two hours of the hangar, meaning that they weren’t free to make plans on some of their days off. When they weren’t on call, the pair say they still frequently received calls from the office when they were trying to relax.
In 2023, Pearson and Carlisle say they were scheduled to work an average of 21 days per month, but in some months, they worked as many as 26 days. Duty records didn’t, however, document this high workload because, the lawsuit claims, company officials falsified time records.
In an attempt to address their high workload, Pearson and Carlisle requested that AMBFO hire additional personnel, but they claim this request just made matters worse.
One of two additional flight attendants hired to help out Pearson and Carlisle only remained engaged with AMBFO because she was in a ‘romantic relationship’ with Blank, the lawsuit alleges, while a second was “completely unqualified for the position.”
To make matters worse, a Flight Operations Coordinator who was in a romantic relationship with a company executive was “unable to perform basic tasks,” according to the civil complaint.
Pearson and Carlisle are suing AMBFO for violating the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), claiming that they were not paid a premium for overtime hours despite being entitled.
AMBFO is yet to respond to the civil complaint which was filed by the Lee Meier Law Firm on October 18. The case has been filed under case number: 1:24-cv-04751
You should be careful using a NetJets aircraft as your title pic…that’s not just a random jet. You wouldn’t use a Delta aircraft when talking about United or anyone else.
Maybe you are seeing a photo I can’t see, but I see nothing tied to NetJets, and the photos seem to be stock photos from Shutterstock.
Mark,
On the original post by pyok on Facebook it shows a “QS” registered aircraft which is in fact NetJets,. I would bet the Blanks have a global or a 550,650 or 750 in their 2 aircraft fleet.
Some jobs are demanding. For $175k/yr, you have a decision to make. Is the money worth it or not. If the answer is no, then get another job. Sounds like they were fired for cause and are now retaliating.
I totally agree with this!!
Agree. Many people would kill for such a job at that pay rate or salary.
Totally disagee with that statement. Salary is not slavery. Labor laws still have to be respected. Just because someone is wealthy doesn’t give them the right to run their company like a slave plantation. Clearly you are affiliated with AMBFO which is why you posted your callous statement.! Best of luck.
And you sound like you are associated with the defendants. The whole things smells like a smear campaign. Did these “ladies” ever bring up their issues to the Blank family? I bet there were many perks the f/a’s failed to mention. I think any salary of $175,000 a year sounds reasonable. But were these women hired on an hourly basis? If not, I don’t see how they can claim an hourly overtime.
I hope they are getting sound legal advice.
Some things to consider regarding this issue.
Global 7500, 6000, XRS are what I call large aircraft. Two lav’s, large galley, typically warming oven, refrigerator, micro and coffee maker including a dozen drawers for various storage of supplies, ice, place settings and associated serving implements. And we havent even touched on seating, tables, pull-outs, cup holders, remotes, flat screens, belts & buckles, pillows, blankets. At this you havent even shopped for or stocked the aircraft. Lots going on in the lavs- soaps, creams, tissues, paper, filled, wiped and arranged depending on owner expectations. Assume this is SOP prior to every dispatch from home base, and a “freshen up” prior to each leg thereafter.
I’ve experienced some similar aircraft (Gulfstreams, big Falcons) that behind the scenes were absolutely filthly. Others, spotless in every aspect l as I suspect the case herein. In addition to the foregoing, all that PA stuff is mentally and physically time consuming. Pay your flight crews like your life depends on them. If you expect to be treated like a king pay your cabin crew accordingly and define statement of work / hours of service.
175k a year is more than some Doctors make. So they were indeed paid very, very well.
Commercial airlines have crews for food purchasing and preparation. Crews to clean aircrafts between flights. Crews to stock the galleys with all things needed for each flight, ie, paper towels, cups, toilet tissue, soap in lavatories. In the galleys all types of beverages. Such as alcoholic. Teas. Coffees, water. Juices. Condiments. The china, glassware, and cuttlery. Coffee and tea pots. Food. Linens. I’m sure I have forgotten something. Of yeah, ice. So now, we have 2 Flight Attendants doing the jobs of many. $175,000. is good pay. But not great pay. They may be even loading and unloading the bags, for sll we know. All this, and I am sure they are giving First Class service. Working even harder because that person who is there under pretense, isn’t pulling their weight. But wearing the uniform and the title . To top it all, they may be needed to save someone’s life. $175,000.00. is good pay. But not great pay in the overall scheme of things.
It’s not up to these flight attendants to decide who is qualified. They don’t pay for the labor of these people, and as long as it’s not FAA or otherwise safety violating behavior, they work at the will of the employer, not fellow employees. Same with romantic relationships. Nothing illegal about it, if not coerced or forced.
These attendants were likely on salary, not hourly, so expecting overtime is ridiculous. And most flight crew are on call all but 2-3 weeks per year, as they are often needed at short notice. This claim is normal operating standards.
The only gripe could be that they were given a max amount of hours or days working per year, or told only certain duties, and then made to do much more. And if they don’t like it, quit.
Sounds like to lazy FA’s who didn’t really how great they had it and will lose this suit. The family has the funds to hire proper lawyers, or to pay them to go away. But their name are public, and no private jet owner will ever hire them again.
It’s amazing how quickly people become stupid. Ask anyone that works private – from pilots to FA’s. That is the gig, and you’re overpaid for a reason.
FAA regulates ALL Flight Attendants when it comes to safety. Therefore, ALL Flight Attendants MUST be qualified in safety procedures. Private or commercial. Often times private employers hire FAs that also work commercial airlines. This saves them much money yearly for the training that keeps FAs current in their safety acumen.
I’ll bet if those FA were needed to perform those safety duties in the event of an incident, those employers would be praying for their lives and that those FAs were rested and had those professional skills. Not someone who is inept and running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off.
Making $175,000. per year buys you much, but not the life and soul of a person. If an employer can afford a private jet. That person should afford and hire the proper amount of FAs to work their flights. Their lives could depend on it.