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FAA Contract Protest: Air Traffic Controllers Pass Out Leaflets at LVIA, Saying Proposal Would Worsen Staffing Shortages.

Posted on: Friday, 26 May 2006, 12:00 CDT

By Jeanne Bonner, The Morning Call, Allentown, Pa.

May 26--Air traffic controllers protested at Lehigh Valley International Airport Thursday over a new contract proposed by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Controllers say the new contract would result in cost cuts that could lead to additional retirements. Many airports already have staffing shortages, and the situation could worsen as thousands of controllers approach mandatory retirement age. The FAA has predicted 1,100 people will retire by the end of 2007, and has said it will have adequate staffing levels at all of its airports. Moreover, it rejects the argument that workers will retire because of the new contract.

LVIA has 26 controllers, including workers in training. The controllers say the airport is authorized to have 30.

Local air traffic controllers handed out leaflets to departing passengers outside of the main ticketing area at LVIA, saying "Support the ones who guide you home." Their union, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, has been negotiating a new contract with the FAA since last year, and has stepped up its campaign as June 5 approaches. That's the end of the mandatory 60-day waiting period after which the FAA can unilaterally impose a new contract unless Congress decides to intervene in negotiations.

The union, which covers 15,000 air traffic controllers, has said it has proposed $1.4 billion in concessions, versus $1.9 billion in cuts the FAA is seeking.

The FAA says it is not asking for pay cuts for existing employees but rather is proposing to reduce salaries for new recruits. It also wants to cut premium pay that controllers receive for filling positions at busier airports that are hard to staff, and for working temporarily as supervisors. The FAA said under the proposed contract, controllers will still receive other premiums including holiday and Sunday pay.

The FAA says reducing payroll costs would free up funds to install more advanced monitoring systems. It says pay for controllers has risen 75 percent since 1998. The average controller at LVIA earns $95,800 a year in salary, the FAA said. Nationally, the average is $128,500.

"We cannot agree to a NATCA contract we cannot afford," said FAA spokesman Geoffrey Basye said in a telephone interview.

The union says much of the salary hikes in the last five years were due to across-the-board pay raises for federal government employees. Indeed, some of the air traffic controllers say pay is not the main issue in dispute; rather, they say they want the FAA to negotiate in good faith. The way the current legislation is written, the FAA can cease negotiations and unilaterally impose the contract it wants.

The two parties, which ceased negotiating in April, are also at odds over work rules. For example, the FAA wants to implement performanced-based pay that it applies to the rest of its work force.

Many air traffic controllers are concerned by staffing levels, and they say shortages have led to increased overtime. Jeff Fisher, an air traffic controller at LVIA who was distributing leaflets Thursday, said last summer LVIA's control tower was manned by 23 controllers, versus 26 now. As a result, he said everyone on staff worked mandatory overtime from June to September. That can be particularly stressful, given the tense nature of the job.

"With our current staffing levels, we are just barely able to sustain what we are supposed to do," said Fisher.

Many worry about the anticipated wave of retirements that will begin to hit shortly. Most of the current workers were hired in 1981, after the federal government fired almost all of the existing air traffic controllers because they went on strike. Many are approaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.

Two of the controllers at LVIA are eligible for retirement this year, Fisher said, while five will be eligible next year. Hiring new controllers won't immediately ease conditions for other workers because it takes two to four years to certify a new specialist.

In Philadelphia, the potential staffing shortage is more severe. The airport is authorized by the FAA to have 107 air traffic controllers but is currently making do with 82, said Don Chapman, president of the airport's NATCA unit. Of the 82 workers, 15 to 17 are in training, and are not authorized to work all positions in the control tower, he said. The staffing crunch has led to overtime and stress.

"You have people burning out quicker," Chapman said in a telephone interview.

In addition, retirements will hit Philadelphia hard. Chapman said 14 air traffic controllers are eligible to retire immediately, and another 24 will be eligible next year. The likely drop in staffing will occur as passenger traffic at Philadelphia is soaring due to the presence of discount carrier Southwest Airlines and others.

Chapman rejected the FAA's contention that it is seeking to reduce pay in order to implement technology upgrades. Six years ago, Philadelphia installed a Precision Runway Monitor, a radar system that is five times faster than conventional radar. But the lack of staff prevents controllers from learning the system and using it, he said.

The union wants to return to the bargaining table, but the FAA has said it won't continue negotiations unless the union yields on some of the key issues.

The leaflets the controllers handed out asked passengers to call the union, which would connect them to the appropriate elected officials. Most passengers, however, were not aware the controllers were negotiating their contract.

"I don't feel strongly about it," said Creighton Booth, a Bethlehem resident who was headed to Florida Thursday with his wife, Jane.

Booth, 68, added, "I know some of these guys are very stressed."

Other passengers said the refusal of the FAA to negotiate is a concern because of the vital role air traffic controllers perform.

"I certainly support collective bargaining," said Bill Winey, 63, of Green Lane, Montgomery County. "I don't care to have politicians exerting their heavy hand here, which I think they are about to do."

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Source: The Morning Call, Allentown, Pennsylvania

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