British Airways Bans Crew Social Media Posts From Layover Hotels

British Airways has just added an interesting new restriction on social media use for employees, as flagged by PYOK. Is this logical, or a step too far?

British Airways’ strict new employee social media policy

It’s normal for airlines to have restrictions on social media use for employees. However, British Airways has just taken its rules to the next level, with one of the strictest policies we’ve seen in the industry.

Effective immediately, employees (including pilots and flight attendants) are no longer allowed to post photos on social media from their layover hotels. Not only that, but employees have also been told to wipe any existing photos or videos from their social media accounts (even if they’re private) that were taken at these hotels.

What’s the reason for this concern? Well, safety, and the desire “to eliminate all risk.” The concern is that someone with bad intentions could use computer software to analyze a background and identify the location of a hotel. It’s standard procedure for airline crews to not publicly disclose where they stay on layovers, but at the same time, there haven’t been any restrictions on posting from hotels in general.

So these new rules mean that flight attendants and pilots can no longer post group pictures from hotel restaurants or lobbies, pictures from the pool, or “get ready with me” videos in hotel rooms as such. It’s not clear if this decision was prompted by any particular event, though it’s perhaps worth mentioning that several weeks ago, a British Airways flight attendant was found dead at an SFO layover hotel.

Back in early 2023, British Airways last updated its social media guidelines for employees, whereby the airline banned employees from posting social media content of them “professionally engaged” in their jobs.

My take on British Airways’ strict new social media policy

I think it’s fair for airlines to set clear guidelines for what social media use is and isn’t appropriate for employees. That being said, I find this specific restriction to be rather silly.

If someone has bad intentions, it’s really not that hard to figure out where an airline crew stays. It’s not like they arrive at or depart the hotel undercover — instead, they’re in full uniform, so it’s not exactly a well kept secret. You don’t need AI tools to determine where a crew stays.

It’s interesting to note that virtually no airline has a policy this strict when it comes to social media use, even the Gulf carriers, which are known for having very strict policies.

Whether good or bad, social media has definitely become an increasingly important part of peoples’ lives over the years. There’s no denying that for many airline employees, it’s a contributing factor to what they enjoy about their jobs. Of course I’m sure some people will roll their eyes at that, but as long as they do their jobs professionally, it shouldn’t matter.

Bottom line

British Airways has introduced a strict new social media policy for employees, whereby they can no longer post pictures or videos on social media from layover hotels. Yes, this means flight attendants and pilots can’t even post pictures or videos from their rooms, without any obviously identifying characteristics.

The airline is concerned that bad actors will be able to use computer software to figure out where they’re staying, and hopes this will eliminate risk. However, that seems like a bit of an overkill, since it’s not that hard to figure out where airline crews stay.

What do you make of this new British Airways social media policy?