Resignation of JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater announced

US airline JetBlue announced Saturday flight attendant Steven Slater is not currently employed by the company and his lawyer says he resigned last week. Last month, the air carrier announced Slater's duties had been suspended.

On August 9, the 38-year-old Slater announced that he was quitting his job in a profane loudspeaker announcement and exited the plane with two beers in hand on the emergency slide. According to Slater, the incident was due to a rude female passenger hitting him in the head with her luggage. However, other passengers on the airplane dispute this explanation. Slater has been charged with "reckless endangerment" and "criminal mischief" by the New York Police for deploying the emergency slide, which they say could have crushed someone below. After the incident, Slater became an instant online sensation, with 13,000 "friends" on Facebook and others calling for the arrest of the passenger.

According to airline spokeswoman Jenny Dervin, JetBlue will not be releasing more details on Slater's employment status in respect of the former flight attendant's privacy.