‘Toxic Uniform’ Scandal Rages On: American Airlines Flight Attendants Push Ahead With California Lawsuit After Defeat in Illinois

Last week, a long-running lawsuit brought by a group of American Airlines flight attendants over a ‘toxic uniform’ scandal were delivered a fatal blow after a Illinois court issued a summary judgment in favor of the airline and the uniform manufacturer, Twin Hill.

After nearly eight years of litigation, a triumph for American Airlines and Twin Hill meant defeat for the group of bellwether flight attendants who had hoped to convince the court that a new uniform rolled out in 2016 caused them serious health problems due to chemicals used in its manufacture.

A Crushing Defeat in Illinois

To summarize a lengthy ruling from U.S. District Judge John Tharp Jr, the flight attendants and a slew of expert witnesses they had called in to make their case couldn’t prove that the uniforms had caused their various health complaints.

Yes, the flight attendants had endured rashes, hives, breathing difficulties and other significant health issues but there wasn’t enough admissable evidence to link these health problems with the new uniform.

You might, therefore, think that would be the end of the matter but you would be wong, as a second group of American Airlines flight attendants are pursuing a second claim in a California court over the same issue.

California Court Delivers a Stunning Win for Flight Attendants

And unlike in Illinois, this group of flight attendants have already had a major victory after a Alameda Superior Court jury found that Twin Hill was responsbile for ‘debilitating illnesses’ suffered by four bellwether flight attendants.

The jury in the 2023 court victory awarded the flight attendants more than $1 million in compensation and opened up the case for a second bellwether trial which could get underway in the next few months.

If the jury in this trial also sides with the flight attendants then thousands more cases could be filed against American Airlines and Twin Hill.

The Toxic Uniform Scandal Explained

The story behind the toxic uniform scandal started in 2015 when American Airlines first partnered with Twin Hill to produce a new line of uniforms for 65,000 pilots, flight attendants, and customer service agents.

Initial wear tests among a small group of employees highlighted potential skin reactions to the garments, but independent scientific testing of the material concluded that while two chemicals found in the uniform had the potential to cause “sensitization,” all the other chemicals were unlikely to cause reactions.

A second wear test in Fall 2015 resulted in some employees reporting a chemical-like smell from the uniforms, but again, the testing company said that the chemicals it found in the garments lacked irritation potential.

Having been given the all-clear, American Airlines rolled out its new uniform in September 2016, and it wasn’t long before the carrier was inundated with complaints from employees about their new threads via a special hotline and webpage created by flight attendant unions.

Chemical Culprits: What Was In the Uniforms?

Lawyers representing some of the flight attendants in California say the Twin Hill uniforms were contaminated with formaldehyde which caused a slew of health complaints, including rashes, hives, respiratory problems, headaches, and throat irritations.

Along with formaldehyde, indepedent chemical testing of the uniforms also revealed the presence of 15 other chemicals that have been “known to cause dermatological, respiratory, neurologic and allergenic/immunological conditions.”

Within months of rolling out the Twin Hill uniforms, American Airlines was forced to start allowing flight attendants to wear off-the-rack clothes, although some crew members said they were suffered reactions just by being in the presence of a coworker wearing the official uniform.

American Airlines quickly ditched Twin Hill as a supplier and signed a new deal with Lands’ End, which managed to roll out an updated uniform without any major issues.

The ‘Toxic Uniform’ Scandal Timeline