NWP Reps/Members,
It’s now been close to 723 days since the FAA imposed what they believed were fair conditions of employment. Meanwhile, with every retirement and every resignation, the workforce in the FAA is telling the FAA that nothing about these work or pay rules is fair. The FAA told us that it was all about the money, but then walked away from the exact cost savings for which they were looking. It was last Father’s Day, in front of Chairman Oberstar/Costello, when the FAA finally admitted that “Well, it’s not ALL about the money”.
I think the FAA is getting close to the point of realizing that their new conditions of employment are failing, and failing quite miserably. But rather than approach us in good faith in order to resolve our differences at the bargaining table, they continue to apply band aid fixes to the system hoping that they will just go away. One of these band aid fixes is to throw money ($$$) at the transfers hoping to attract controllers to short staffed facilities such as SCT, FAI, N90, TPA, etc. This is from the very agency that was/is claiming that they don’t have any money.
We have some perfect examples of their failed policies and a system on the verge of collapsing in the Western Pacific Region. Just take a look at SCT (Southern California Tracon), NCT (Northern California Tracon), L30 (Las Vegas Tracon), RNO (Reno), etc.
NCT had eleven (11) Operational Errors in thirty days! Management at NCT directed a training stand down for four (4) days. Two (2) days after training resumed, NCT had another Operational Error.
During a recent visit to NCT, it appeared that the Western Terminal Director wasn’t that concerned about the number of Category A/B (Most serious close calls) Errors at NCT. Well, here are the numbers for NCT, and as former Administrator Blakey used to say, “Facts are stubborn things”:
· FY '08 Category A/B Operational Errors- 11
· FY '07 Category A/B Operational Errors- 6
· FY '08 Category A-2, B-9, C-11, PE (Proximity Error)-1, Total = 23
· FY '07 Category A-1, B-5, C-5, PE-1, Total = 12
· In FY 2008, NCT will double the amount of overtime spent in the previous year.
· So far in FY 2008, NCT has lost 15 CPCs to transfers, promotions, terminations or death. They will lose three (3) more in October of '08.
Meanwhile, down at the Southern California, Management is spending overtime dollars like it’s going out of style. Therefore, it would only be natural that when you force controllers to work six (6) day work weeks and ten (10) hour days that the stress and the fatigue will translate to a sharp increase in Operational Errors. Let’s take a look at the cold hard facts for SCT:
· FY ‘06 Operational Errors (OE) - 19
· FY ‘06 Proximity Errors (PE) - N/A
· FY ‘06 Operational Deviations (OD) - 4
· FY ‘07 OEs- 21
· FY ‘07 PEs- 1
· FY ‘07 ODs- 3
· FY ‘08 (Year to Date) OEs- 30
· FY ‘08 PEs- 9
· FY ‘08 ODs- 7
One would hope that those at the helm of the ATO, the FAA, the Congress, and the White House would look at the cold hard facts and realize that the imposed conditions of employment at the FAA have not worked, will not work and will most likely result in a tragic accident sooner rather than later.
Ham
NWP RVP
· On Tuesday August 12, 2008, there was another critical power failure early in the morning at Burbank Tower. The failure was identical to the August 3, 2008 power failure with the exception that the SCT BUR area did not lose their radar. The sole CPC on duty at BUR Tower stated on the log: Critical power failure. RADAR DISPLAYS, RADIOS, ASOS, SAIDS OTS. During the outage the CPCs at both facilities displayed excellent teamwork so that no flights were delayed.
· I sent a sample new hire/transferee welcome packet to all Facility Reps in the Western Pacific Region. This welcome packet is from our awesome brothers and sisters at ZID. Please find someone at your facility to help you come up with a similar packet that is tailored to your facility. If you have any questions regarding the welcome packet and/or the NATCA Re-Loaded project, please contract our NWP Re-Loaded Rep Joseph Segretto (joseph.segretto@natca.net).
· I went to Oklahoma City for the meet and greet with the academy students on August 14, 2008. I must tell you that the fine folks at NATCA OKC local are some of the most hospitable folks that I have ever met. Jeff Cox and Dave Osteen always make us feel so welcome. We had a terrific turn-out by the academy students for lunch and dinner. There were close to 112 academy students in attendance for dinner. I also got an opportunity to meet each and everyone of the folks that were headed to the Western Pacific Region.
· Two of the students who are headed for HCF (Honolulu Control Facility) told me that they weren’t getting COLA (Cost of Living Allowance) while at the academy. HRPM Policy Bulletin 54 changed the policy so that COLA is now based on the effective date of one's assignment instead of the report date. Thus new hires at the Academy should be receiving COLA. I emailed Enroute VP Rick Day and Acting Western Enroute Director Heather Leonard from the meeting and asked them to correct the pay issues for these two individuals.
· Mike Hull and National Pay expert/Contract Team member Jeff Walukonis worked with the FFZ NATCA Local regarding facility upgrades and what’s needed.
· Kevin Sills, Mike Hull, and John Paiva begin to work on the arbitration case out of EMT.
· I am working with the Las Vegas HUB manager to resolve an issue dealing with PCS and an employee’s entitlement to time for House Hunting.
· The Western Pacific Region will be sending five (5) representatives to the Basic Arbitration class and one (1) representative to the Advanced Arbitration Class.
· We have included a very fine power point lesson on how to use the Grievance Tracking system on our website, http://nwp.natca.net, under the “Labor Relations” tab entitled “NATCA GATS Training Presentation”.
· If you are attending the Miami Convention and would like to attend the retirement briefing on Tuesday September 9, 2008 at the Miami Convention Center, please sign up in advance by contacting Katie Gressang (kgressang@natcadc.org) at the NATCA National office.
· LAX Tower management demonstrates its priority by, apparently, adding a deputy and another staff manager to the ranks of LAX management. The new total for management and support staff at LAX Tower is twenty-eight (28), which includes; contractors, TM, and administrative support. Meanwhile, there are thirty-six (36) controllers on board!!
· I was advised by SJC Facility Rep Rich Burton that a controller who showed up to work on his day off for some other issues was asked to work overtime. Here is the show stopper though; he wasn’t dressed properly!!! Management didn’t care and asked him to work anyway. No NOTAM was issued and everything went well with the less than professional attire being worn by a CPC!
· I talked to Steve Hefley regarding the recent spike in operational errors and retaliation by a first line manager against one of our area reps. Meanwhile, Steve advised me that Carmel Torres, wife of our recently deceased brother Anthony, recently found out that she is expecting a little boy. This would have been Anthony’s first son.
· Four (4) terrific members stepped up for the NWP OWCP Lead position. I must admit that it’s very difficult to choose among the four very talented and qualified individuals. However, I have decided to select NCT Facility Rep Steve Hefley as our new NWP OWCP Lead.
· We have a new retired NATCA member on the “Boots on the Ground” program, Todd Wilhem, formerly of P50. Todd will be working with some folks from NATCA that have set the bar very high in Pennsylvania; Bob and Valerie Butterworth. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank Todd for stepping up and dedicating his time to Labor and NATCA.
· NWP Finance Lead Eric Hughes discussed the fiduciary duties of a Facility Rep with some interested members and offered some suggestions on budgeting and a financial policy. Here are some of the suggestions from Eric:
“My recommendation, adopt financial policies which define things like "appropriate expenses", how much of each rebate check will be designated for convention attendance, meal limits, etc. My Local designates 25% of all rebate checks to convention attendance, and 25% to regional membership meeting attendance. The National Expense Reimbursement Policy is an excellent starting point for Locals if not adopted as written.”
I wanted to remind all SRF-12 Facility Reps that if you or your members attend NATCA training courses or regional meetings that your expenses will be paid in accordance with the NATCA Expense Reimbursement Policy. http:/www.natca.org/assets/Documents/members/NEB-Policies/ExpenseReimbursementPolicy.pdf
SRF-12 Reimbursement for Training/Meetings (9/04, 4/06)
For any local receiving $3,000 or less in annual dues rebates, transportation and lodging expenses required to attend NATCA training courses or regional meetings will be paid by the region or department hosting the event, in accordance with NATCA’s expense reimbursement policy. All such expenses require pre-approval by the individual responsible for the budget before costs are incurred.
· With the Miami Convention fast approaching, I wanted to make sure that all delegates are aware of Article 2, Section 18 of the Contract. Please note that official time is NOT to be used while conducting internal Union business at the Convention. ONLY, annual leave, LWOP, compensatory time off or credit hours may be used for the convention.
Article 2, Section 18. At facilities with one hundred (100) or less Union members, one (1) Union delegate shall be granted annual leave, LWOP, compensatory time or credit hours to attend the Union's annual convention. At facilities with more than one hundred (100) members, one (1) additional delegate shall be granted such leave for each additional fifty (50) Union members. Annual leave, compensatory time or credit hours for other employees, who wish to attend the convention, may be approved unless operational requirements do not permit. Leave requests under this Section shall be submitted six (6) weeks in advance. Any questions regarding the number of Union members shall be resolved using dues withholding figures pursuant to Article 11 of this Agreement.
· For all members, please remember to plan your trips for regional meetings and/or NATCA training courses to ensure that you are there for the entire time. Also, if you plan to drive your private vehicle, please make sure that you do a cost comparison for airfare. If airfare is cheaper than driving and you decide to drive, be advised that we will only cover the reasonable cost of the airfare and not the mileage.
· Pat Forrey advised that he had talked to Enroute VP Rick Day about the proposed changes to the 7210.3 on time between shifts, napping and other scheduling issues.... “Rick stated that this was intended to be sent to a small group of people for comment but it got out!! Both Terminal and En route have been told to NOT implement any changes, as these issues need to be negotiated with NATCA. He said that if facility managers are telling their reps that they are implementing these proposed changes to let him know where that is and they will fix it...”
· Kevin Sills and Mike Hull work with Steve Costa regarding a grievance out of ZUA.
· If you thought that the FAA “Good ole Boy” system (OSI/SCI) was messed up last year, just wait until this year. DOI has apparently informed the FAA that final input must be received no later than December 15. As a result and in order to complete the necessary reviews and prepare the data for processing, each Line of Business/Staff Office (LOB/SO) must submit their final lists of OSI and SCI recipients and ineligible employees to AHR by November 21, 2008.
· I talked to Curtis Cannon VP PSP NATCA regarding a recent SCT bid. Curtis is on temporary duty at SCT and has been on TDY off and on for over a year!!
· Mike Hull, Mike Foote, Mel Davis and I worked with SMO Facility Rep Pam Choi regarding a serious FAA break down in communications. The FAA decided to change the closing time of SMO without involving all of the stake holders, namely NATCA. The City of Santa Monica had no idea that the FAA had decided to do this either. Needless to say, I was very, very disappointed in Western Terminal for allowing this to happen right under their nose.
· I worked with SCT Facility Rep Mel Davis regarding their ongoing staffing woes, operational errors, power failures, Color in ARTS, the status of the Palm Springs consolidation, etc.
· Senator Boxer’s staff contacted me and briefed me on their recent meeting with the FAA. They have asked me to give them an update following our scheduled meeting with Rick Ducharme, Kathryn Vernon, and Linda O’Brien at SCT on Tuesday September 2, 2008. I will be attending this meeting with Mike Hull, Mel Davis and Ron Geyer.
· PHX Facility Rep Steve Palmer contacted me regarding a member in need at his facility. I am always humbled by the show of compassion demonstrated by our brothers and sisters in NATCA. As such, I am asking you to do your part and see if you can spare some annual leave or sick leave for a member of OUR family.
Tim Morgan will likely not return to work this year as he continues to care for his wife (in and out of remission for cancer for the past four year) and two young children (ages 4 and 6). His wife’s cancer has come back and it’s pretty serious. Tim’s leave balance is getting very low and Steve Palmer has worked to place him on the Voluntary Leave Transfer Program (VLTP). Tim previously worked at VNY and LAX. Please do what you can to help our brother out.
· Meanwhile, our dear sister and former LAX Tower Facility Rep Diane Aceves had major back surgery in mid-May, a double fusion between the lowest three vertebrae. From the time she scheduled the surgery, she worked for comp time as often as possible to try to cover the needed time off. Unfortunately, she just recently found out that she is required to be off for an additional eight (8) more weeks in the back brace and won't be able to return to work until at least the beginning of October. Please do what you can to help our sister out.
· If you can donate leave to Tim or Diane or both, please click on the link below from an FAA computer to donate. When you click on the link, there is a menu on the left side. Choose the recipients list and online donations, next click on Western Pacific and submit. The list should then appear.
https://webapps.awp.faa.gov/ovltp/index.cfm?here=home
· Our good friend Brian Franklin who was a high school student that attended the Berkeley Regional membership meeting and has been a very avid fan of Air Traffic Control, NATCA and Aviation in General is going off to College. Here is what Brian recently sent me as he prepares for College in Alaska:
“Esteemed NATCA Bretheren--
My apologies that I haven't really kept you in the loop about all this, but I have been admitted into the Forty-Ninth State Fellows program ("the honors college within the honors college") at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). The Forty-Ninth State Fellows program is a component of the honors program at UAA and is a leadership-building program that allows students special opportunities to pursue internships, contribute to the community, and benefit from many extracurricular educational opportunities. I had to go through about a million essays, letters of recommendation, and interviews to get admitted to the program.
I will depart for Anchorage this Sunday. I will be majoring in a business-related field. I also gained admission to Purdue University (beginning one year from now), and I can choose to take advantage of that opportunity should I hate what Alaska has to offer! In either case, I would study business, and both schools offer the additional opportunity to earn the CTI designation.
I will continue my aviation-related endeavors, including going after more advanced pilot ratings. I would also like to continue working with you since yours is a cause I truly believe in, and your careers are the centerpiece of the aviation system. Speaking of which, I do have a working demo of the TEC database site that is being held up only by the fact that my tech friend has suffered yet another death in the family and has yet to email me the instructions to present the demo to you.
Thank you for all the opportunities you have given me to learn about labor organization, human nature, doing the right thing, and aviation. I will continue to work on the TEC route database as soon as I am afforded that opportunity by my friend. I then hope you will allow me to continue working with you; the events you put on and the causes you work for really teach me a lot. I only hope to give back. I'll talk to you from Anchorage!”
I have already been in touch with Alaskan Regional Vice President Rick Thompson regarding Brian Franklin and he will be taking good care of our friend while he is attending school in Anchorage.
· Since I will be travelling to SCT next week for a meeting with the FAA, the weekly “Hot Sheet” will be postponed to the following week.
