Putting stuff in the overhead bin...
 

During boarding, it is often possible to put stuff in the overhead bin while standing in the aisle seat area if no one is sitting in the aisle seat yet, leaving the aisle free to allow others to go by.

But most people stand in the aisle when putting stuff in the overhead bin, even when the aisle seat is unoccupied, blocking the aisle. Why?

Because it's easier.

I usually tend to blame such things on infrequent travelers, but I find myself wondering if maybe that's too simplistic. I think we all have days where we're not the sharpest tools in the metaphorical shed.

Have you known anyone who had a hernia operation from heavy lifting from an awkward angle? That's why. I'm not going to have surgery, possibly more than one surgery, because somebody is in a hurry. Sheesh. What's the matter with people?

I would agree that the first person to put something in the bin might be able to step into the row of seats and do this - however...

Once there are a few items in the bin it (seems like every time that I am putting in my bag) I need to reorganize/move/shuffle items already in the bin (to squeeze in another bag) requiring me to walk up and down the aisle to access the full length of the bin.

Only if (1) there is space in the overhead bin immediately above the aisle seat and (2) if the bin does not extend so far out that you have to basically reach over backwards to put something in.

Most people are shorter than bin height (which stands to reason) so to actually put something in the bin they have to some distance away from the bin itself.

1. i'm 75 and had a stroke. i have never had a passenger or a FA offer to put my bag up. carry a cpap.

2. my wife is 67, and about 5'4". i have never seen anyone offer to help her with her bag.

3. i have never seen one of these strong young handsome men stop while boarding to help someone who obviously needs help. help is usually offered by 50ish year old men.

4. all the pretty boys are in a hurry to get their seats and turn on their electronic gear. particularly if they have an aisle seat.

if the airline wanted to reduce turnaround time, they would instruct FA's to help pack the overheads.

I have had people take the overhead bin I had targeted when I stepped aside to adjust and put my own bag in. If I had stayed where I was and blocked their access I could have gotten my targeted space as I was in the line in front of them. Also I find it somewhat of an awkward angle to put a 20"+ bag into the overhead bin while standing in the aisle seat area. For me it's so much easier if I am directly in front of when lifting my bag up. What works for you doesn't work for all.

Putting stuff in the overhead bin...
 

Your wife must look more competant than I do. I am 79 and 5 foot 6. I have never ever flown when someone did not offer to help me put my bag in the overhead. And that includes my last Delta trip to Germany when the group of handsome young men opposite me about ran the plane out of drinks but got up twice to help me .

I fly nearly every week and I would say the amount of times I see someone assist a woman with lifting a bag into or out of the overhead bin is 10% for the elderly woman and 70% for the pretty shapely well dressed 20 or 30 year old woman. You are fortunate that someone helps you frequently however that is not what I am seeing on the flights I fly on which are all over the US and internationally as well. I fall into neither category and can lift my own bag.

Yeah. If it's light I would do it from there (and I have done so in the past) but it's a bad position to be lifting something heavy into the overheads.

My 4'10" wife has had no problem getting help from other passengers with the overheads--they're obviously completely beyond her. She couldn't put an empty bag up there.

Liability.

I'm disabled. The FA's always help put my bag in the overhead. (they then get some chocs off me for the FA's -they work so hard, I think they deserve a treat)

what liability? of course there is liability for every motion by FA's. they are employees of the company.

I'd guess it's more about the union contract than liability. That or the airlines trying to limit their liability for back injuries.

So do you want to know what kind of liability they could run into by lifting bags of stuff people didn't want to check for a variety of reasons which include fragile objects, cameras, laptops, etc?

If you know there is liability for their actions because they're an employee of the company do you want them to help put stuff in the overhead bins or not?

If you want them to put stuff in the overhead bins do you think they should be liable if they break something?

I'm pretty sure the point is that they don't want to be liable for breaking your priceless artifact you bought at a flea market at a tourist trap, and I'm pretty sure I don't want them shoving my camera and breaking it.

That said, I agree with most of the other posters, I'm not throwing out my back lifting luggage just so that you can get seated a couple of minutes faster.

It would be interesting if an airplane company built an airliner where the storage was under the seats, so people that are vertically challenged could just slide them under and hop up into their seats.

The only problem is then people would forget there is a "step" to get to their seat and fall on their faces.

Why are you pretty sure of that? Liability for their employees is the much greater risk.

F/A's medical insurance does not cover them if they are injured putting someone else's heavy, overpacked suitcase in the overhead since it is not officially in their job description. Their job description states that they are to assist, meaning they are to help you find a place or check it for you. Their medical insurance is very specific and doesn't cover a lot of things, such as being injured on the employee bus or on a layover. It's not a union thing, or a lazy thing, it's a practical thing because most of them don't have the financial resources to pay for their own medical bills out of pocket. If you don't think you can lift it you always have the option to just check it.

Perhaps "obviously needs help" is not so obvious to others, unless you ask.

I have assisted other passengers with carry-on bags when asked and it was possible (i.e. not blocked by others standing between me and the bag).

They are afraid of FAs getting injured by lifting heavy carry-on bags. Then the flight has to be cancelled due to not having a complete crew.

Some non-US-based airlines appear to use carry-on weight limits to minimize the risk of FA injury if they help with the carry-on bags.

why not take pouring coffee out of their job description. could get a burn. take out pulling off those coke tabs, bad cut and infection. no go into toilet, could contract infection. do not roll carts, could slip and get run over. stop hanging outterware for first class passengers. break cameras and computers? why are not all in checked luggage claimed? they do open and close the front door, and it is heavy. they pick up those food trays and move them from the heater to the cart. burns and back injuries.

bus drivers load the bus. cab drivers load the cab. if services are not in their contracts, it should be. very low wages certainly are.

i carried liability insurance for my nurses. i thought back injuries from lifting patients would be the big claim. wrong. biggest claim is nurses sticking themselves with patient needles. nurses should never touch needles???

by the way galley wench, you are confusing personal med ins with company liability ins. i also do not understand a med insurance policy that would exclude you on a layover, unless you are under company control, and being paid at the time. if on the bus, and you get ill, or stand up and bang your head, i certainly would not think that excluded. bus crashes, bus insurance supersedes.



what is a FA anyway? a safety engineer

I'm in the same situation with being 4'10", but feel I'm strong enough to do it myself if I've slept well before the flight. If I'm fatigued, then I have to ask in the most polite way for help. Usually about 90% of the time that I start to maneuver to put the bag in the overhead bin, there's someone asking if I need help or just saying, "I'll do that for you," as it certainly looks like I'll make a few missed attempts or I'll be hurting someone near me... and about 50% of the time it is a FA helping.

If I do end up doing my own heavy lifting at the end of a flight, to get my bag down, I will wait for everyone to exit ahead who are behind me, then I have to stand on the vacant aisle seat to get it out. To lift it up, I first toss everything I need for my flight on my seat, then I usually promptly tell anyone already seated near me to watch their head and hope my aim is good. Usually my first attempt gets it to the edge and that alerts an FA to jump in and assist. I try never to pack a bag to the point of bursting at the seams and I try to fit it in a sturdy rolling duffle that is narrow; can hold about a week's worth of clothes that I can wear twice or wash by hand and dry overnight.

I guess the answer is that if required to lift luggage, they would do as many EU airlines have done, and cap the weight at a much lower limit (say, 7kg as some do, or 10kg as is widely applied). On balance, I think that would annoy more passengers than the FAs not helping with the luggage. BA explicitly states that passengers must be able to lift the bag themselves, not sure if other airlines do.

They mitigate most of the other risks you have mentioned (i.e. the water for tea and coffee doesn't reach boiling point, they have a decvice to open canned drinks, procedures to ensure two people move heavy carts, so it doesn't slip from one person's grasp, protective clothing and gloves for cleaning the washroom, protective clothing when dealing with the ovens, etc)

In terms of insurance, I don't know the wording of the contracts / state laws, but I do know that injuries in Canada, for example, while working, look at the action being performed, and in some cases, if the staff were specifically told not to do it (i.e. lift luggage) and injure themselves doing so, they would not be entitled to anything from the company - what that could mean is no paid sick leave while they recover, the company not paying for necessary treatment (e.g. physiotherapy), them being laid off / changed to other duties (and lose a hefty portion of their salary) because they are unable to perform the duties, in the short or long term. FAs are paid a very low salary - I don't think I would ask them to risk what livelihood they have because I don't want to check my bag.

Cab drivers are not required to help with luggage, nor are most bus drivers (the exception would be where they are required to assist someone who is registered disabled, but even in those cases I believe they can refuse if it would harm them (e.g. if the cab driver had a hernia)).

The fact is, many cab drivers, and bus drivers, and FAs will help - I've seen plenty of FAs help stow babies change bags, an elderly person's bag, a child's knapsack. What I don't expect them to do is act as a porter and schlep everyone's bags. Most people can heft a bag up - but most people couldn't heft up 150 people's heavy bags, or even 50 people's bags - it isn't always a one-off bag that can injure, but repetitive awkward lifting certainly can (as can a bad lift, of a very heavy bag too).

Yeah, she might be able to do it by standing on a seat. Otherwise, not a chance--she's short-limbed even for her size. She doesn't even try, she just asks for help and always gets it without difficulty.

Well said ^^^

I have, occasionally, seen an FA helping people with their luggage. But that was a long time ago. In recent memory, and liability of injury has become an issue.
Yesterday, I was surprised when a young FA on an Alaska Air flight offered to help an older lady by lifting her bag and placing it in the overhead bin.
The only time I asked for help was after my hernia surgery, when I wasn't allowed to lift anything for a couple of weeks. The FA flatly turned be down, "Don't bring bags that you can't lift".
Technically, she was correct, they are not there to lift our luggage for us even though my carry on weighed under 25 pounds, if not less than 20.
I quite agree with your observations number 3 and 4.
When my wife rode the metro in Washington D.C., she was never offered a seat even when she was pregnant. You are more likely to be offered a seat in Europe even when you can't be pregnant. :D
I was even offered a seat on a tram by a lady, who was probably older than I was, when I was carrying my son in my arms. I had just turned forty. The woman was probably in the mid 50's.

While I'm the kind of person that would happily jump in to help an elderly or rather short person get their belongings into the over head, I am also very much of the opinion that if a person has limitations as to what they can lift above their heads and schlep through the airport, then that person should take that into consideration when packing and checking luggage.
It's no mystery what's involved in luggage and airtravel, be responsible for yourself. I'm not saying everyone should ignore someone that needs a little extra help, I"m just saying if you know your physically not going to be able to carry your belongings then either curb check them or pack less, maybe go the extra mile and minimize how it effects the people around you.

My main gripe is with able bodied people who just pack more than they can lift.

I won't risk injury due to lifting an item into the bin at an odd angle.

However, when I board I am prepared... and already have out the
items I want to have at the seat with me. My item is slipped into
the overhead and I slip into my seat... it all happens quickly.

I notice many others seem to have an unorganized fuss routine
when boarding that blocks the aisle needlessly.

top of the form:is this a work related injury? if an uninsured painter comes into my factory in maryland and falls, he's mine. if an uninsured carpenter comes in and wacks off a few fingers, he's mine. the employer is first, but if there is no insurance, he is mine.i do not know what happens when there are work related injuries to international companies in international places, but unless "LONGSHORE AND HARBOR WORKERS' COMPENSATION ACT" has been revoked, in the usa, you own the broken person. read the regulation.

So true. People blocking the aisles are often not just standing there for a few seconds while they hoist their bag, or even just pushing around the other bags in the compartment to make room. Quite often it's people rummaging around in their bag for their reading material or snack, taking off a jacket and sticking it in their bag, asking "Do you want your bag up here, too, honey?" etc., while boarding comes to a halt for anyone who is standing behind them but sitting past them. And it may only be for 20 or 30 seconds, but multiply this times the number of passengers who do it, and it can quickly add up and even contribute to late departures.

I tend to have plenty of patience for those folks who are actually having trouble lifting their bags (as long as the bags aren't oversize), and I often offer to help them. But, sorry, I do feel cranky about the "unorganized fussers." And often a simple "Excuse me, please, may we get by?" has no effect on them.

I do have a problem with the able-bodied who pack too heavy but when someone can't lift anything then I'm not going to gripe if they need help with a reasonable-weight bag.

Unorganized, uncaring, self-important fussers are annoying for sure. I help those passengers who may need it. But, how is it possible for women to pack 80 pounds into a carry-on??

I'm not entirely following. If the carpetner comes in, uses machines he is not trained on (say, a metal sheet cutter) without authorization, without permission from the floor supervisor, and has previously signed a document where he acknowledges he will not use the metal cutting tools, and cuts off his fingers, you are going to pay him a salary for the rest of his life, because he is unable to work as a carpenter any more?

If the uninsured painter falls off a ladder because he is stoned and is showing his mate how he can stand on one leg on the top of the ladder, you are going to pay for all his medical bills, rehabilitation, his salary while he spends several year getting fit to work again?