After a series of highly publicized racial incidents with American Airlines or its employees, the company recently announced that it will be instituting mandatory implicit-bias training for the company in 2018.
“We are proud of the diversity and inclusion initiatives already in place at American, but we know we can do even better. So we viewed the feedback as an opportunity,” CEO Doug Parker said in a letter to staff, according to KTLA-TV.
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The new program’s curriculum is currently in development but will include both in-person and online training. In addition, American announced that it is bringing in an independent firm to review its hiring practices and has pledged to overhaul its system for managing discrimination complaints.
As reported earlier by The Root, in October the NAACP warned black travelers to use caution if they decide to fly with American Airlines because of what the organization described as a “pattern of disturbing incidents reported by African-American passengers.”
Parker said that airline executives met with NAACP leaders earlier Thursday prior to the announcement.
In a statement released Friday, the NAACP said that it supports American’s plan but will not yet drop its travel advisory, taking a wait-and-see approach.
“We think we’re on the right road, but the NAACP will continue to meet with Doug Parker and other senior American Airline[s] employees to ensure that the company walks the walk as well as it talks the talk,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said.
Read more at KTLA-TV.
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