Flight attendant alleges a pilot sexually assaulted her, and WestJet protected him

A former WestJet flight attendant is suing the airline for allegedly failing to protect her from a pilot who sexually assaulted her — and for firing her while protecting him.

Mandalena Lewis alleges that on a layover in Maui, the flight crew had been having drinks in the pilot's hotel room. The other crew left, at which point the pilot suggested sex, but Lewis refused. He then threw her on the bed, kissed her and groped her between the legs before she was able to push him away and leave the room, she says.

"WestJet will not comment on allegations contained in ongoing legal proceedings, and will file a statement of defense," the airline said in a statement, which continued:

"We take these allegations very seriously. We are committed to maintaining a safe and healthy workplace environment, and encourage our employees to report any behavior that may violate our policies via our confidential and anonymous whistleblower hotline or to any member of our leadership team."

Lewis, however, says she reported the assault both to a coworker and her supervisor, but the response did nothing but penalize her.

She says the company told her she would not have to work with the pilot again, according to the Globe and Mail, but that meant she lost a lot of work because she could not be on standby or reserve.

Then, she met another flight attendant who had a similar experience — with the same pilot.

Lewis followed up on WestJet's response, she says, and used a curse word in one of her emails, for which WestJet allegedly fired her for "insubordination."

The suit, which alleges WestJet failed to protect her from a pilot with known assault history, has been filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

Outrage online has focused on company management.

An online petition calling for WestJet CEO Gregg Saretsky to step down has received more than 10,000 signatures.

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