Obvious question: why did the passanger have to sit in the bathroom and not the "uncomfortable" jumpseat vacated by the flight attendant. I guess the jumpseat might have been located in the cockpit, which would have been a security issue if they allowed a passenger to occupy that seat. Then again, it's a safety issue to have the passenger in the bathroom for an extended amount of time; they must be strapped in during takeoff and landing, and what would have happened if they encountered turbulent air? Either way, this is pretty stupid. The employee should have sucked it and stayed in the jumpseat, instead of forcing a paying customer to vacate his seat.
This is just another data point in the entitlement attitude displayed by unionized American airline workers, though. A good friend of my parents is an executive with the Moncton Airport Authority. After 9/11, when many US-bound planes were forced to land at Moncton, he personally met with the aircrews to assist with their needs. He said the flight attendants of (IIRC) an American Airlines flight refused the shared hotel room he had arranged for them, stating that their union contract guaranteed them a single room (never mind that there weren't any single rooms available because Moncton wasn't prepared for so many unexpected visitors). He compared their behaviour with the crew of a British Airways flight, who declined a hotel room completely and instead opted to stay at the airport with their own passengers, making sure their needs were attended to.
All that being said, a $2 million lawsuit is ridiculous compensation, and I hope any judge will agree that's way beyond what the passenger should be entitled to. Free flights for a year or two is much more within reason.
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