Breeze eases plan to rely on students as flight attendants
A start-up airline is scrapping its plan to hire only college students as flight attendants because the approach didn't draw enough job applicants
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Breeze Airways, a start-up carrier that hopes to begin flying this spring, is giving up on a plan to hire only college students as flight attendants after the strategy failed to draw enough applicants.
The airline founded by JetBlue creator David Neeleman posted a new listing for flight attendants on Friday without the student requirement.
Breeze originally offered “current and future” online students at Utah Valley University up to $6,000 per year in educational assistance, a monthly salary, company housing, and one paid trip home each month.
Breeze spokesman Gareth Edmondson-Jones said the airline is keeping the program with the college in Orem, Utah, while broadening its search.
“The UVU course wasn’t delivering the numbers of flight attendants we need,” he said.
The Association of Flight Attendants had criticized Breeze's original plan, saying that the college-student requirement would prevent people from turning the job into a career.
“It attempted to take us back more than 60 years,” union President Sara Nelson said Friday. She said she is still concerned about the pay and shifting costs to workers.
Utah-based Breeze plans to carry leisure travelers to smaller cities that have been overlooked or abandoned by larger airlines. The airline hasn't said which cities it will serve, but Neeleman has hinted it will start in the Southeast, including Florida