A leaked email appears to show that Delta airlines has encouraged flight attendants who have tested positive for coronavirus to keep the news to themselves.

The Huffington Post obtained an email that was reportedly sent to 25,000 Delta in-fight staff on Thursday, advising them of the proper procedures to report a positive coronavirus test, and instructed them not to tell co-workers of their condition and instead go through corporate channels.

“Please refrain from notifying other crew members on your own,” read the email.

“Once you have completed the reporting procedures listed above, leaders will follow the established process to notify any impacted flight attendants.”

Flight attendants were also told not to share their positive status or discuss their symptoms on social media. In a post on the employee intranet Friday morning, the company appeared to provide employees reassurance that their managers were committed to properly communicating positive cases or COVID-19 symptoms to employees who may have been exposed.

The Huffington Post obtained audio of a voicemail message left for a Delta flighting attendant, letting the employee know that a co-worker had suspected symptoms, but enouraging them to continue working “while self-monitoring for symptoms for 14 days.”

In an email to Huffington Post, Delta spokesperson Morgan Durrant said that the company was not planning to enforce the directive, insisting that no employee would be penalized if they communicated about their coronavirus diagnosis or symptoms.

“Indeed, it was not our intent to cause confusion among flight attendants on this,” Durrant said.

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[Feature image: AP Photo/Mary Altaffer]