FAA, Air Traffic Controllers Union Work on New Contract
Jul. 20–MIAMI — If the nation’s 14,500 air traffic controllers are not satisfied with a new labor contract, thousands could decide to retire early — leaving the nation’s air travel system facing a potential staffing and safety crisis.
Yet the Federal Aviation Administration says it will be hard pressed to dole out any salary increases and at the same time modernize the system.
The FAA and National Air Traffic Controllers Association on Tuesday began hammering out a new agreement to replace the 1998 contract that expires in September. The FAA said billions must be spent to develop the “next generation” air traffic system, one that relies on satellite and GPS technologies to increase the flow of aircraft in and out of the nation’s busiest airports and reduce delays.
Those delays already have stung Fort Lauderdale, one of the fastest growing airports in the nation. More than 5,700 flights were delayed between October and March for reasons unrelated to weather — 4,200 more than the previous winter. Miami had normal delays and Palm Beach International had above average delays in the same period, authorities said.
The FAA says the controller union’s current contract is so expensive it has crippled modernization efforts. The average controller receives $165,000 in salary and benefits and labor costs account for 80 percent of the agency’s operating budget.
Total controller compensation has ballooned 68 percent to $2.4 billion since 1998. At that time, controllers promised productivity gains that “just haven’t happened,” said Sharon Pinkerton, FAA assistant administrator of policy and planning.
The union says the FAA is “misrepresenting” controller salaries by inflating them with “standard” federal benefits.
Yet controllers are not seeking salary increases as much as they would like to ensure their overall benefits, including pensions and insurance, are not reduced, said Steven Wallace, president of NATCA’s Miami Center chapter, which represents 261 controllers.
If that happens, “that would only increase the number of people who are ready to walk out the door now,” Wallace said.
In the next decade, almost 11,000 controllers — more than 70 percent of the workforce — is eligible to retire. The FAA has submitted a plan to Congress to hire 12,500 controllers in that period. Meanwhile, controller ranks have thinned by 1,000 since 1998.
Wallace said reduced staffing has contributed to the delays in South Florida. For example, to avoid being overloaded, controllers must slow down the number of aircraft arriving at the region’s three major airports.
“We have seen many delays due to staffing in South Florida, at various times at all three airports,” he said.
The union also wants to have a strong say in implementing air traffic upgrades.
“It’s really not about salaries,” Wallace said of the labor talks. “It’s really about modernization.’
The union has steered clear of any strike talk. In 1981, President Ronald Reagan fired 11,400 striking controllers after they demanded higher salaries and a modernized air traffic system.
Instead, NATCA President John Carr blasted the FAA for holding press conferences on Tuesday in about 20 cities, including Miami, to state its hard line.
“This highly coordinated media assault is a disappointing indication of how much time and energy the FAA is prepared to expend in attacking air traffic controllers,” he said.
The FAA countered that informing the public was important.
“We are seeking a solution that is fair to controllers, fair to taxpayers and fair to the flying public,” Pinkerton said.
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