Southwest flight attendants sue airlines for death from husband COVID-19

Southwest Airlines flight attendant whose husband died COVID-19 (New Coronavirus Infection) Is suing the carrier at an employee training event, claiming that the worker did not follow the safety protocol and that the worker became ill and passed it on to his spouse.

Carol Madden, 69, has been working in the Southwest for four years and she said:dreamsLast summer, her husband, William Madden, sent her in and out of a mandatory training session in Baltimore. Three days after the event on July 13, Madden and her husband both developed COVID-19 symptoms. Carol Madden recovered, but her husband was admitted to the hospital on August 1, and died a week later at the age of 73.

so Proceedings Madden has filed for $ 3 million in damages, claiming that Southwest ignored public health guidance from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at a full-day training event. According to the proceedings, flight attendants used fire extinguishers, oxygen masks, defibrillators, manipulated airplane exits, and self-defense.

According to the complaint, none of the 10 trainees asked health check questions, measured body temperature, or tested COVID-19. According to the proceedings, they were not told to maintain proper social distance and everyone touched the same equipment that was not disinfected between uses.

The trainee also practiced self-defense with a human-sized dummy called Bob. This “leaded to intense breathing and contact with the common surface, but Southwest Airlines failed to disinfect Bob and other equipment used,” the complaint alleges. According to complaints, workers wore masks while training session participants were sitting in the classroom at intervals of only 3 feet, but were inconsistent.

A colleague who shared a desk with Madden tested positive for COVID-19 three days after the event, but Madden only learned of the diagnosis from his colleague’s Facebook post. According to the complaint, Southwest Airlines did not notify Madden that the workers on the training day were COVID-19 positive until two weeks later.

“Why didn’t they adopt the same kind of safety precautions they adopted for passengers? Why did they expose people to someone with COVID before entering the room, or God tests them? Didn’t you ask if you forbid that? “” Madden lawyer Dan Mastromarco told CBS Money Watch.

Southwest: Family is not our responsibility

The Southwest moved last week to dismiss Madden’s proceedings.so Filing In the Federal District Court for the State of Maryland, the airline said it was impossible to prove that Madden had obtained COVID-19 in training. However, the company claims that Southwest was not responsible for ensuring the health of her husband, even if such a connection could be established.

“It’s true that employers have a duty of care to provide employees with a reasonably safe working environment, but that duty does not extend to members of the employee’s household,” Filing said. I will.

Asked to comment on the proceedings, Southwest Airlines sent a statement to CBS MoneyWatch emphasizing its commitment to keep workers and customers safe.

“We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to Madden and the many people around the world who lost their loved ones to COVID-19. A proceeding in dispute to respect and maintain confidentiality. We do not provide any commentary on this. ”

“Since the pandemic began, the safety and well-being of Southwest Airlines employees and customers has been our uncompromising priority,” the statement continued. “Southwest Airlines has taken enhanced steps to clean and maintain aircraft, airports, and workplaces and will comply with all CDC-compliant notification guidelines.”

Family problems

Madden has one suit A handful of proceedings We are trying to make the company accountable for the death of an employee’s family.

In the past, a similar incident focused on workers who brought asbestos back to their clothes and made their families sick, Diane Hoffman, director of law and healthcare programs at the University of Maryland’s Frances King School of Law. Said. However, the courts are divided when it comes to deciding whether the employer is responsible.

“I think this is overkill in terms of holding employers accountable, perhaps for policy reasons. Courts say jobs, industries, etc. for companies that employ a lot of people,” Hoffman said. Will be considered. ”

For Madden, the biggest legal challenge in this case is to prove that she was infected with COVID-19 at work. That is one of the reasons why such proceedings were relatively rare, lawyers say. Out of 10,200 coronavirus related proceedings Tracking According to law firm Hunton Andrews Kurth, less than 200 people are associated with working conditions. (According to the company, about 40 proceedings have been filed against airlines, most of which are related to refunds to customers.)

“It’s very difficult to show how and where the virus was obtained,” Alejandro Leiva, a lawyer for Greenspoon Murder, who represents the employer, said in a recent seminar. “Did you really get it from your boss? Or did you get it from your neighbor? Maybe you got it from your child at breakfast? Prove causality It’s very difficult to do. ”

Mastromarco said Madden “was overly careful in his private life” and was confident that she could prove she was infected with COVID-19 at work. “I don’t know exactly when. [transmission] It happened that day, but it definitely happened because of loose standards, “he said, referring to the training session at the heart of Madden’s proceedings.

back to work

According to Madden, one thing has changed. That’s how Southwest Airlines conducts annual flight attendant training. Returning to this week’s mandatory event, Madden said the difference was clear.

“Everyone must wear the gloves they provide. All equipment is wiped off after each use,” Madden wrote in an email through a lawyer. “Signs of a small group of social distances are sprayed on all tables and chairs in the classroom and handed out by one instructor before being allowed after the previous class. [sic] Lunch in a bag! A tremendous change. “