DALLAS (LifeSiteNews) — Southwest Airlines’ legal troubles over its discrimination against a pro-life flight attendant continued recently when a federal judge denied the company’s request for a new trial.
Charlene Carter previously won a $5.1 million judgment against Southwest and the Transportation Workers Union of America (TWU) in July 2022 after she was fired from her job six years ago for objecting to her local union’s support for abortion, as LifeSiteNews previously reported.
District Judge Brantley Starr also recently ordered Southwest to turn over documents, as Carter’s attorneys allege the airline is not following the jury’s decision.
Now Judge Starr delivered more bad news for Southwest, as he rejected a request for a new trial.
Judge Starr first pointed out Southwest’s hypocritical stances on whether a jury should have been allowed to see a separate arbitration decision.
He wrote:
Southwest contends it was prejudiced because the jury wasn’t given the decision—indicating that it thinks the jury would have reached a different conclusion if it had the arbitration decision. But on the other hand, Southwest says a limiting instruction could have made everything right by telling the jury it couldn’t defer to the arbitrator in reaching its decision here. Both can’t be right. Had the Court allowed the arbitration decision, it would have issued a limiting instruction, which would have prevented the jury from merely copying the arbitration decision for its decision in this case. Accordingly, the Court did not abuse its discretion in excluding the arbitrator’s decision, and there is no basis for a judgment as a matter of law or a new trial.
The company, Judge Starr wrote, has admitted it fired Carter for her religious beliefs against abortion, which she shared with others. “Carter holds a religious belief that abortion is wrong and that she must do whatever she can — including sending the communications at issue — to save unborn children,” the judge wrote. “And, as Southwest concedes, it fired her because it considered those communications to be ‘policy violations’ and viewed those policies as conditions of Carter’s employment.”
United Airlines acted despicably when they forced unvaccinated staff out of their jobs, laying-off those who objected to taking the experimental jab on religious grounds.
It's time all of us stood up for these brave conscientious objectors who refused to budge.
SIGN: I am boycotting United Airlines until they permanently drop their COVID shot mandate.
Thousands of employees refused to take the shot and United placed them on an “UNPAID LEAVE of ABSENCE,” a new term for "fired".
The airline later invited the staff back amid the ensuing chaos of crew shortages, but the COVID policy remains in place, hanging over the unvaccinated as a daily threat if authorities call for more restrictions.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby even mocked the unvaccinated of the company at the time, saying they “…suddenly becoming religious” and openly threatened them that were putting their "job on the line.”
The unvaccinated were not allowed to work, the airline would not pay them, and they were denied all benefits of United employees, including travel privileges, access to health savings, health benefits, and (in the name of health safety) they denied Medical Insurance Coverage during the Covid-19 medical emergency.
BOYCOTT UNITED AIRLINES UNTIL THEY APOLOGIZE
30 unvaccinated, religious staff are now bravely taking a landmark court case against their former employer.
They contend that United Airlines went further than any other airline in mandating the shot for all staff, and then illegaly placed many of the religious staff on unpaid leave for their refusal to comply.
The medical products being forced on staff were developed and produced using aborted human fetus cells, thus violating the consciences of many believers concerned with the sanctity of life.
Join the Boycott: I support the 30 unvaccinated staff in their pursuit of justice.
Even after United Airlines had been informed by several plaintiffs that the Covid-19 vaccines were not working as advertised in August 2021, the airline created an ultimatum for its 67,000+ employees. Get the shot, or lose your job.
With staffs' religious liberty trampled upon, United used every trick in the book to make their position untenable.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit even report monetary incentives and extra holidays being offered to break Federal Aviation regulations barring pilots and crew from taking experimental medicines, as well as condemnation, shaming, and accusations the vaccine was failing due to their non-compliance, and that they were killing people.
These heavy-handed tactics were intended to cause the unvaccinated to bend to the airline's will.
But the affected staff say they "kneel only to God in Heaven, the maker of Heaven and Earth."
We must all seek justice against the illegal, indecent, and treacherous actions that United exacted against its own staff.
Please share this petition with as many people as possible - help us fight this battle so that future generations of Christians won’t have to fear this type of treatment by their employers.
MORE INFORMATION:
United Airlines employees file lawsuit over tyrannical, government-backed COVID jab mandate
Legal Fund: LifeFunder.com/wings
He also criticized Southwest’s antipathy toward people of faith.
“Southwest’s argument is this: companies can sacrifice the faith of their employees on the altar of company policy because some employees dislike people of faith,” he wrote. “Southwest’s interpretation of the ‘undue hardship’ standard for providing religious accommodations is as disturbing as it is deficient.”
The airline also wants an employee’s “feelings” about being exposed to religious beliefs to trump another employee’s right to expression.
The National Right to Work Foundation, which is providing free legal assistance to Carter, celebrated the decision.
“We are pleased the District Court has emphatically and completely rejected Southwest Airlines’ scattershot motion to overturn the jury’s verdict against Southwest for its role in illegally firing Charlene Carter for her religious opposition to union politics,” president Mark Mix told LifeSiteNews in an emailed statement.
“National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys will continue to defend Charlene’s rights and the rights of any American who faces retribution for speaking against union coercion in their workplace,” Mix said.
The union has already appealed the decision to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and Southwest is expected to do so as well.
The airline company did not respond to a request for comment from LifeSiteNews on Wednesday morning.