I would say to the person who made the decision. Two different people would make different decisions in the same situation. It's people who think beyond "Our policy is......" that make the difference in lives of people.
May years ago, one of my friends dies of a massive heart attack. He was 38. I was shaken. I was looking for a fare to go to his funeral. I couldn't get bereavement discount as it's only for family. In my conversation with a USAIr rep, I told her that, my friend and were in school together, and came to study in the U.S. the same year. Neither, he nor, I had any family, as defined for bereavement fares, here. But the truth is he is the only "family" I had here, as we were family to each other. She said "That's good enough for me. She got a supervisor to OK the fare.
We usually give credit to the company but always forget the people who step outside the box to make things happen, when rules sticklers will always say "it's against our policy".
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Those who sacrifice liberty of some to purchase a little temporary safety, will have neither liberty nor safety.
"At the end of the day, we have rules and guidelines in place, but there are special circumstances that take employees adding some flexibility," Delta spokesperson Susan Chana Elliott said. "The accommodation of this passenger is an illustration of our employees being empowered to do the right thing."
Kudos, and kudos for the rationale.
Selfishly, I hope this is also a turnaround moment for Delta employees being reminded of their flexibility and empowerment to do the right thing.
__________________ this space reserved for future snarky or comment
I would say to the person who made the decision. Two different people would make different decisions in the same situation. It's people who think beyond "Our policy is......" that make the difference in lives of people.
May years ago, one of my friends dies of a massive heart attack. He was 38. I was shaken. I was looking for a fare to go to his funeral. I couldn't get bereavement discount as it's only for family. In my conversation with a USAIr rep, I told her that, my friend and were in school together, and came to study in the U.S. the same year. Neither, he nor, I had any family, as defined for bereavement fares, here. But the truth is he is the only "family" I had here, as we were family to each other. She said "That's good enough for me. She got a supervisor to OK the fare.
We usually give credit to the company but always forget the people who step outside the box to make things happen, when rules sticklers will always say "it's against our policy".
Yes, it is the individuals who make things like this happen, but it is the company that "sets the stage" for them to happen by hiring the right people, training them and creating the environment to allow them to make the compassionate decisions. The question is would this be more likely to happen at Delta than at airline X? And would DL have stood behind the employees if the outcome had not been so positive and the other passengers had to witness an unfortunate situation. I'd like to think that the answer is yes to both.
Good job, Delta!
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