Dont know if any of you know this, but every Air Traffic Controller in the FAA has been locked down in their facility for the course of their shift. THis started on Sunday the 3rd, when a new "contract" was imposed by the FAA on the controllers. I use quotes in the word contract, because NATCA, our union, has not ratified or agreed to the terms of this new contract.
Getting back to the lockdown. We are not permitted to leave the facility now to get lunch/dinner. If you dont brown bag it, or your forget to bring your lunch, you most likely not be able to eat during your shift. The only exceptions to this are: 1) if you facility has a crapateria, and you actually get your chow break in time before the crapateria closes (these places are closed at nights, holidays and weekends though), 2) one person per shift at my facility will be allowed to go on a chow run for the rest, however that person will be forced to go on excused leave for that time, and not get paid any pay differntials for that time...talk about a mutiny in sector in deciding who loses pay to get the food...
many towers can only be accessed through the gate areas at major airports, meaning the controller has to be screened by TSA, which in turn means, no liqiuds or any of that jazz. now they cant bring their lunch, they cant leave the facility for lunch, so they starve for their 8 hour shift.
some facilities have even removed vending machines or snack bodegas.
This gets better. We cannot leave the building for any reason, whether it be to go have a smoke, take a walk, get some fresh air because many of us choke on dust because the air quality is so lethal in these facilities. Some facilities are letting controllers leave the building but must be available for recall within 30 seconds via a cell phone. And you must tell the supervisor each time you leave, and leave your cell phone number. Some facilities are requiring bathroom breaks to be limited to 5 minutes, and must also be available for immediate recall...go think about that one. Some facilities just dont let their controllers go outside for any reason (even to roll up their car windows if it starts raining).
Oh and as for Laura Brown, spokesperson for the FAA, who stated that if a controller is fatigued or not fit to work, he should not report to work and would not be disciplined. Wanna know the truth? On the exteme side, some have been threatened with suspension and termination if they say they are fatigued and cannot work. Others have been told to go work anyway and deal with it.
So while all you pilots are flying around, think about your controller who has probably got minimal sleep the night before, is being harassed and intimated by the FAA every minute of every day, and probably hasnt been able to eat a thing in 8 hours.
Oh, but now that we are all dressed in business casual attire (and believe me managers all the sudden are fashion police deciding whether your khakis or brown shoes are dressy enough), safety will never be compromised, you can rest assured that my situational awareness has increased by 60% now that I am dressed up... And as long as the FAA can save money through short staffing, forcing controllers to work 20 out of 26 hours, etc, they will have plenty to spend on their $18 million meeting of the minds in St Louis this week -- i.e. all management of every FAA facility going to STL to learn about how to impose the new contract.
Getting back to the lockdown. We are not permitted to leave the facility now to get lunch/dinner. If you dont brown bag it, or your forget to bring your lunch, you most likely not be able to eat during your shift. The only exceptions to this are: 1) if you facility has a crapateria, and you actually get your chow break in time before the crapateria closes (these places are closed at nights, holidays and weekends though), 2) one person per shift at my facility will be allowed to go on a chow run for the rest, however that person will be forced to go on excused leave for that time, and not get paid any pay differntials for that time...talk about a mutiny in sector in deciding who loses pay to get the food...
many towers can only be accessed through the gate areas at major airports, meaning the controller has to be screened by TSA, which in turn means, no liqiuds or any of that jazz. now they cant bring their lunch, they cant leave the facility for lunch, so they starve for their 8 hour shift.
some facilities have even removed vending machines or snack bodegas.
This gets better. We cannot leave the building for any reason, whether it be to go have a smoke, take a walk, get some fresh air because many of us choke on dust because the air quality is so lethal in these facilities. Some facilities are letting controllers leave the building but must be available for recall within 30 seconds via a cell phone. And you must tell the supervisor each time you leave, and leave your cell phone number. Some facilities are requiring bathroom breaks to be limited to 5 minutes, and must also be available for immediate recall...go think about that one. Some facilities just dont let their controllers go outside for any reason (even to roll up their car windows if it starts raining).
Oh and as for Laura Brown, spokesperson for the FAA, who stated that if a controller is fatigued or not fit to work, he should not report to work and would not be disciplined. Wanna know the truth? On the exteme side, some have been threatened with suspension and termination if they say they are fatigued and cannot work. Others have been told to go work anyway and deal with it.
So while all you pilots are flying around, think about your controller who has probably got minimal sleep the night before, is being harassed and intimated by the FAA every minute of every day, and probably hasnt been able to eat a thing in 8 hours.
Oh, but now that we are all dressed in business casual attire (and believe me managers all the sudden are fashion police deciding whether your khakis or brown shoes are dressy enough), safety will never be compromised, you can rest assured that my situational awareness has increased by 60% now that I am dressed up... And as long as the FAA can save money through short staffing, forcing controllers to work 20 out of 26 hours, etc, they will have plenty to spend on their $18 million meeting of the minds in St Louis this week -- i.e. all management of every FAA facility going to STL to learn about how to impose the new contract.
