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A black star for Virgin Australia
I frequently fly domestically in Australia expressing my true gender with no problems to date. But as I have no need or desire to switch my official status from one binary gender to another I do run the gauntlet of “being different” all the time.
It is a fact that recently things have got a lot easier for those of us who don’t wish to deal with companies or government as either a male or a female. But sadly it seems that Virgin Australia is stuck in a time warp.
Late last year I booked a couple of tickets on-line with Virgin and found that their guest details form was very restrictive. It has a mandatory Title: field that cannot be left blank, and it forces the binary choice of either Male or Female gender.
It was a case of go along with the airline or don’t fly. But after getting the tickets I lodged a complaint on-line.
Quote:I have just made a reservation for my partner and myself to fly to Adelaide next March.
During the booking procedure on-line I was dismayed to discover that it was mandatory for me to select a salutation (Mr, Mrs) and a gender.
I am transgender and whilst I still legally have a male sex I present, and will present for the flight, as androgynous or female.My first complaint is that if you wish to know the legal sex of the guest then that is what you should ask for. Whilst for most of your guests the terms gender and sex are interchangeable – for someone who is transgender they are not. If necessary I will tick a box to indicate that I am legally of male sex (though my NSW photo ID drivers licence does have that information for security to check. I find offensive to be forced to lie and tick a box saying I have a male gender.
My second complaint is why do you insist on a gender based salutation. I am happy to be know as Adrian Barnes. But my ticket proudly now says Mr Adrian Barnes – something that can only cause me personal discomfort at checkin and has no apparent value to Virgin.
I will be interested to hear what Virgin’s position is on this situation.
In favour of your company I must add that I have travelled many times with you and on all occasions have been treated courteously by cabin staff and never addressed with a pointed MR.
I would just like your booking system to be equally accepting of the diversity of your guests.
Virgin have a policy of responding to all complaints within a specified time. So I just sat back and waited….
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20 Replies
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The wait was not in vain…
yesterday I received a formal response to my complaint:
I have the vague suspicion that was just a standard letter sent out to keep the complaint statistics looking good.
So I replied:Quote:Dear Virgin,Your stock reply is as offensive to me as your on-line booking form
as it persists in addressing me as “Mr Barnes” which was the essence of my original complaint!!
It does not address the serious concerns I expressed about the data you require to book a flight.If you review my original feedback I was questioning why it is necessary to state my Gender as Male or Female to book an airline ticket.
It makes no sense when the photo ID I will be presenting to board (a NSW drivers licence) does not contain this information.
Can you please tell me why it is necessary to issue tickets with MR or MRS in front of the guest name when it is both inappropriate and embarrassing to those who are transgender.I refer you to the Human Rights Commission guidelines on recognising sex and gender diversity:
http://www.humanrights.gov.au/news/stories/new-guidelines-recognise-sex-and-gender-diversityAs I won’t be presenting for the for the flight as MR Adrian Barnes can you please alter my ticket so the name matches my driving licence – Adrian Barnes.
And I look forward to receiving a more considered and specific reply to my original complaint.Regards
AdrianPerhaps it will be another 2 months before I hear from Virgin – and by then I will have been to Adelaide and back!
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Sounds as though Virgin have clay feet unable to respond to twenty first century protocols.
I await with baited breath for Virgins’ response. I’ll take it up with AGA today and note their response. I always thought Australias’ airlines were transgender friendly, obviously I was wrong. -
It may be a case of the airline being required to comply with aviation industry standards (e.g. IATA), treaty obligation or legislation. For international flights, there is a requirement that the booking information be exactly as recorded in national identity records and in this respect, the booking information may possibly be more flexible, because some countries have more flexible standards regarding gender identification on national records.
Conversely, domestic booking systems may have less flexibility, although this will change as national identity documents in Australia may now record “sex” in three different categories (and so, booking engines will have to comply at some stage, I would have thought):
Having said that, some on-line booking engines include the the option of “Doctor” as a salutation (I use “Royal Highness”
for one airline) – which, of course, is gender neutral. This may be preferable to using Mr, Mrs or Ms, and causes less concerns if coupled with a gender neutral first name. Use of a title you are not strictly entitled to use will not present any fraud issues – you are not acquiring any gain or reward in this regard, nor are you causing any loss to any other person. In any event, in my experience, most customer facing personnel in the airline industry usually have no issue with what salutation you wish to be used, or what your gender identity is and generally treat you with considerable respect (unless you’re hassling them for a free upgrade, have way too much excess baggage, or requesting your tenth whiskey sour within the last three hours). -
Maybe they are worried about ‘Hidden Weapons?’ 😆
What ever there must be a way to satisfy this specific need and do it so all concerned feel safe.
I am sure Richard Branson himself would be on our side and actually embarrassed of his Companies behaviour after having raised the bar in the first place.
Jennett -
Quote:Having said that, some on-line booking engines include the the option of “Doctor” as a salutation (I use “Royal Highness” Smile for one airline) – which, of course, is gender neutral.
The actual list Virgin offer is very small – does this reflect their clientele or is it that they don’t seriously want to have a Title but they collect it anyway.
I think those who have laboured to obtain the right to legitimately call themselves Dr would feel cheated if all transgender “guests” chose it for their flight. And I would be quite embarrassed if the flight attendant greeted me as Dr Barnes. Whilst faking your identity is possible I don’t think I should be forced by the Virgin booking system to do it.
The battle continues!!
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The privilege of being able to use “Doctor” and hence avoid being misgendered etc. was a bonus when I obtained my PhD. I wouldn’t recommend anyone do a PhD just for that benefit, though!
Best,
Simone.
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hi there one and all i do not have no problems flying as i have got rid of my old name and i have a new one and if i did not have my old name steel i can see the problems you haveing i go to flight center to book my flights so i do not have the book on line problems .
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Quote:hi there one and all i do not have no problems flying as i have got rid of my old name and i have a new one .
Amander,
I’m quite happy with my name (and my unique gender) and have no desire to change either.Obviously if you associate with the society norms and adopt a binary gender, male or female, the on-line booking system is going to work perfectly for you – as that is who it was designed for. Spare a thought to the significant number of gender diverse who do not feel that way – and for whom the “tick-this-box-or-that” mentality of some businesses is either inconvenient or offensive.
Besides which, spending all that time and money on name changing and body changing would be a very expensive way just to book a cheap Virgin flight
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I haven’t flown with Virgin but regularly fly femme with Qantas. All my bookings must be made in my male name and the boarding pass prints out thus.
My approach is to cross out both first and last names (not so they are obliterated though) and write “Michelle please”. Works every time and evokes great responses from attendants. The flights are very special and attendants very engaging. Difference can be a good thing.
Interestingly, I’m pretty sure that notes have been added to my profile used by staff that I present femme. I have taken the trouble on a number of occasions to provide very positive feedback through the Qantas system.
Michelle
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Quote:Difference can be a good thing.
Couldn’t agree with you more – difference brings so much into my life that I enjoy. By conforming totally and being “normal” you just become a grain of sand in the desert!
I fly Virgin quite a bit – and (as i said in my original complaint to them) I’ve always been treated with respect (and sometimes as special) by the flight crew. What I want to see is the ground support/booking system raising their game to the same level!
But I will try your idea of enhancing my boarding pass where necessary – a great idea!!
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Enhancing the boarding pass does pose the older male attendants with years of training to use last names a conundrum. I don’t want my last name used … other passengers might hear and connect. Once I was called Ms [last name]. Kinda nice but also worrying. Hence I cross out both names.
Have 3 flights coming up in a week or so. Just love flying femme as you do Amanda.
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With today’s knowledge on Transgender issues I would have thought that there would have been just a little bit more tolerance in the paper trail of businesses by now.
This reminds me of the last Census that we all had to fill out, there was only the usual Male and Female boxes to mark so I wrote Transgender next to them, drew a box and crossed that instead. I must say that I did expect a fine for doing so but none eventuated. It will be interesting to see what the next Census has for us to mark. -
Hi all
I totally agree with you Amanda, that is a lot of the business only give you the option of a binary title or limited professions.
Simone your lucky, as you have such profession. (Dr) mine is sister.Karly. I wish i had the gumption to do that to the national census. (good one).
I have never flown in my alternate gender, but do wish to do it some time and I wondered how to get past the immediate binary gender problem as well as given birth name. So thanks Michelle for the tip.
Vivian.
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I have received a more personalised and constructive response from Virgin.
It is nice to see it doesn’t start Dear Mr BarnesQuote:Dear Adrian,Thank you for taking the time to complete our online feedback form with regard to your experience when you booked via the online reservations system.
At Virgin Australia we believe that all our guests require to be treated with utmost care and respect. I have taken the liberty of logging your correspondence as an official complaint to ensure our Technology Development Managers are aware of your comments. We do not intend to make our guests feel uncomfortable or belittled in any way. I assure you that the Management Team will then review your comments and ensure this is addressed. In view of your overall experience, I would like to express my deep apologies both personally and on behalf of Virgin Australia for the disappointment caused.
If I can shed a little light on why we might require a guest’s gender at the time of booking, there are a couple of factors. Firstly, it helps us with seating allocations for even weight distribution on the aircraft. We use an average weight depending on gender, and only at the time of check-in, our Ground Crew, who has then sighted the guest, can make any changes to seat allocations, based on your request. Second, if we are caring for Unaccompanied Minors on the flight, our policy is they will not be seated next to another male guest, with the exception of Virgin Australia employees who travelling in uniform.
I would like to take this opportunity to clarify that it is not Virgin Australia’s intention to offend any individual. As an equal opportunity airline we not only welcome a variety of guests from different nationalities and cultures but also employ staff with diversified cultural backgrounds and from all walks of life. It was with regret to read of your feedback and it is disappointing that our service has not met your expectations on this occasion.
In closing, thank you once again for taking the time to inform us of your experience as it is only through receiving constructive feedback such as yours that we can make improvements and take appropriate action. All our guests deserve to receive a dependable, reliable service and I am sorry that your opinion of our airline as a result of this incident has been tarnished. I can only hope that this experience does not deter you from travelling with Virgin Australia and that all forthcoming flights will be enjoyable in every way.
Kind regards
Nicole Shield -
All in all not too bad a reply. I can’t imagine jetstar being any better, probably worse actually.
