The Great Stewardess Rebellion

How Women Launched a Workplace Revolution at 30,000 Feet

By: Nell McShane Wulfhart

Narrated by: Bonnie Friel

Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

The empowering true story of a group of spirited stewardesses who “stood up to huge corporations and won, creating momentous change for all working women.” (Gloria Steinem, co-founder of Ms. magazine)

It was the Golden Age of Travel, and everyone wanted in. As flying boomed in the 1960s, women from across the United States applied for jobs as stewardesses. They were drawn to the promise of glamorous jet-setting, the chance to see the world, and an alternative to traditional occupations like homemaking, nursing, and teaching.

But as the number of “stews” grew, so did their suspicion that the job was not as picture-perfect as the ads would have them believe. “Sky girls” had to adhere to strict weight limits at all times; gain a few extra pounds and they’d be suspended from work. They couldn’t marry or have children; their makeup, hair, and teeth had to be just so. Girdles were mandatory while stewardesses were on the clock. And, most important, stewardesses had to resign at 32.

Eventually the stewardesses began to push back and it’s thanks to their trailblazing efforts in part that working women have gotten closer to workplace equality today. Nell McShane Wulfhart crafts a rousing narrative of female empowerment, the paradigm-shifting ’60s and ’70s, the labor movement, and the cadre of gutsy women who fought for their rights—and won.

©2022 Nell McShane Wulfhart (P)2022 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

Named a Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post • Longlisted for PEN America's John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Nonfiction

"I've spent so much of my life on the road that stewardesses have always been my friends in the sky. Now I am glad to see The Great Stewardess Rebellion, … the true story of women who stood up to huge corporations and won, creating momentous change for all working women.”—Gloria Steinem, co-founder of Ms. magazine

“A meticulously detailed history. . . Rollicking. . . Shocking, infuriating and excruciating. . . [Wulfhart’s] account credits [the stewardesses] as having played a pioneering role in fighting sex discrimination, and she tells the story well. . . It is dramatic, invigorating and instructive as a textbook example of the courage, ingenuity and persistence it takes to effect such progress.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Wulfhart brings a treasure trove of vintage ads and relatable anecdotes to The Great Stewardess Rebellion. . . Wulfhart, through her prodigious research, secures a place for the women who endured all manner of indignities to forge a better future for those who put their lives on the line every day in a job once regarded as frivolous.”—The Washington Post

very informative!

well narrated and delivered. covers several decades of flight attendant history, the challenges they faced and the accomplishments they achieved on the labor rights and labor union fronts.

History I didn't know!

One of my few 5 star reads of 2022.

I love books that tell a history of a subject I don't know much about. I read another book about stewardesses that I also really liked but that one had a different focus. This not only tells the stories of some of the women who were stewardesses back in the day, but it also tells how they contributed to unionization and women's rights.

Wulfhart is an amazing storyteller. Women's rights are always interesting to me, but she made unions interesting!

Powerful

I’ve been a flight attendant for 28 years and learned so much from this story. Incredible! A must listen for anyone in this profession. All women need to listen to this! Important history for the next generation!

Very Insightful

So interesting - I have great respect for these women after listening to this book. They worked hard to change so many things that we women today take for granted.

required reading for all flight attendants

I'm an APFA base council representative and knew maybe 10 percent of the history uncovered in this book. Our story is one of incremental gain through conflict. We need Delta to join us, so we can win and not just try to hang onto what we've got.

Praise those who took a stand

Detailed history of a fight for justice that affected us all. I fear we may lose all that was gained.

Amazingly true!!

I became an American Stweardess in 1968. All the issues and people mentioned here are exactly the way I remember them. What a trip down memory lane. I retired in 2007 and miss the many wonderful friends although my heart goes out to those still on the job. The work environment we worked so hard to improve has become unbelievably difficult. The current Flight Attendants have no pension and no medical coverage when they leave the company. After the strike in 1993 we became known as “The Little Union That Could”.

A story about unionizing flight attendants

This is the story of how one woman fought to unionize the flight attendants.
If you believe in unions you will love it.