Southwest Airlines, Union Ordered to Pay $5.3 Million to Pro-Life Former Flight Attendant

Christian employee resigned from union after learning her union fees were being spent to promote pro-abortion cause

Air travelers wear face masks waiting to board a Southwest Airlines flight at Oakland International airport in Oakland, Calif., on April 9, 2020. Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

A federal jury in Texas ordered Southwest Airlines and its union on July 14 to pay a former flight attendant who opposes abortion $5.3 million after she was fired for sending pro-life messages to her union’s president.

The jury determined that the airline and Transport Workers Union of America (TWU) Local 556 violated Charlene Carter’s rights as an employee to speak out against the union. The airline was ordered to pay Carter $4.15 million for back pay, and pain and suffering. The union was ordered to pay Carter a separate $1.15 million, according to the Dallas Morning News.