Alaska Airlines agent clashes with passenger over delayed luggage at Newark Airport

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Alaska Airlines agent clashes with passenger over delayed luggage at Newark Airport

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By Sky Industry News

Jul 12, 2024

An Alaska Airlines baggage agent at Newark Airport engaged in a heated confrontation with a customer over delayed luggage. The incident escalated when another passenger attempted to intervene.

The customer expressed frustration over her bag being delayed for more than an hour, demanding quicker delivery. This demand led to a confrontation with the baggage agent, who had no control over the delay. The situation intensified when another passenger stepped in, advising the woman to stop berating the agent. In response, the agent threatened to call the police and have him removed for showing attitude, instructing him to "step back."

A social media post by @ferrarishreds highlighted the incident: "Normal day at Newark airport. Bags delayed for 1 hour stuck in the carousel."

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Reflecting on such situations, one observer noted, "I often feel for agents in the bag office because nobody who is having a good travel day ever goes to see them. Everyone brings a problem. And it’s not their fault. But that’s also the job."

The observer further commented on customer service interactions: "Customers have a duty to treat the people helping them in customer service reasonably. In fact, I always recommend going out of your way to be pleasant, to joke, and build a rapport – because whether or how much they help you will largely depend on how much they want to help you."

At the same time, there was criticism of baggage office agents: "I often find that baggage office agents – especially in major cities – are some of the worst at any airline. Maybe the unpleasantness of dealing with nothing but problems gets to them eventually. That isn’t universally true, just on average. And here we add Newark to the mix."

(HT: Live and Let’s Fly)