One of the most under appreciated positions in the airline industry today is in baggage handling. People are travelling by the millions each year through airports in the United Kingdom and Europe. With the exception of business travellers who only bring a small bag or brief case with them, most baggage needs to be checked and store aboard the airplane. Baggage handlers need to deal with baggage of every size and shape, properly storing it in the cargo area of a passenger liner without error. Young baggage handlers need to learn a few secrets in order to succeed over the long term in the airline industry.

One of the secrets to career long success in the baggage handling profession is to develop empathy for every traveller’s bag that they encounter. Baggage handlers in the United Kingdom handle millions of pieces of luggage on a yearly basis, which means that they hold in their hands billions of pounds worth of merchandise and treasured possessions. These hard working professionals need to be able to put themselves in the position of every traveller heading through their particular airline. The best way a baggage handler can do this is to think about their own travel experiences and handle baggage with care.

Another secret to long term success in the baggage handling world is to become familiar with every aspect of the airline industry. Baggage handlers often focus on their specific job responsibilities, narrowing in on perfecting their own performance in the workplace. However, baggage handlers are part of a larger process whereby luggage is brought to them from the customer service centre and ends up aboard the airline. As such, baggage handlers are not the beginning and end of the baggage storage process at major UK airlines. Handlers should consider the tasks of the front line workers like ticket agents and security guards in determining which baggage can be brought aboard, stored away, or rejected for travel.

A final secret for the success of baggage handlers in the United Kingdom is that teamwork is the best path toward job advancement. Baggage handlers work in an assembly line environment, where handlers work to organise baggage into classes, load it onto conveyer belts, and determine the best way to get the job done. Individually, baggage handlers can work hard to get their job done and may be successful over the short term. However, baggage handlers interested in long term success build strong relationships in order to ensure the smooth operation of the loading process.