NWP Reps/Members:
As most of you know, I am a proud Marine Corps veteran and have a true appreciation for all those who are serving or have served in the United States Armed Forces. Recently, I saw a post on the NATCA BBS (bulletin board) which prompted me to get in touch with Stephen Ramsden at Atlanta Center. One of our brother’s who is a developmental at ZTL, Jason Rich, who is also a Lieutenant in the Army National Guard has been called for duty to Afghanistan. Here is what Stephen had to say:
“Jason Rich is a proud young man and a good man and was hesitant to ask for help from his NATCA brothers/sisters but apparently the financial repercussions of trading his ATC income for that of a young officer protecting our freedom overseas has had a toll.
I know that there are rumors of some sort of supplemental pay to make up the difference between his active duty pay and his ATC pay but this has not reached the troops yet, at least not in the Southern Region.
1stLt. Jason Rich has asked that I forward his humble request for any leave that any of you can spare to help he and his new wife out during these hard times of war.
He also wanted me to let you all know that he is thinking of his buddies and your emails and or Facebook contacts (Jason's Facebook profile- http://www.facebook.com/RichJD13#/RichJD13?ref=ts&__a=1)
are invaluable to he and his company while deployed.
An employee requesting to donate annual or sick leave within FAA may apply either through the VLTP online intranet site ( https://webapps.awp.faa.gov/ovltp/index.cfm?here=home ) or complete and submit FAA VLTP Donor's Annual Leave and/or Sick Leave Application Form (FAA Form 3600-25 (02/03)) (MS Word). The request is given to the potential donor's front-line manager. The request includes the proposed donated hours of annual or sick leave to a specific leave recipient”.
Please do what you can for our brother and his family while he proudly serves in our nation’s Armed Forces.
Please keep Debi Donahue and her family in your thoughts and prayers. Debi is the Region X Administrative assistant. Recently, Debi’s daughter-in-law suffered an accident while white water rafting. She was thrown and hit her head pretty hard. She is now in a rehab hospital where she will undergo an aggressive therapy program.
In Solidarity,
Ham
NWP RVP
· The Fall Western Pacific Regional Membership Meeting will be held at the newly remodeled Hilton/San Jose on Monday, September 28 (8am-5pm) and Tuesday, September 29 (8am-noon). Our agenda will be focused on the new NATCA/FAA agreement, so make your plans now to attend. Information for reservations is as follows:
RESERVATIONS:
Please call the hotel at (408) 287-2100 and request the group rate for NATCA.
Deadline for reservations is September 4, so please reserve your room ASAP. Room Rate is $95/night, plus taxes. To confirm your reservation, the hotel will require a first night's room deposit. Check in is at 4pm and check out is Noon.
· All Facility Reps-please remember to send your change of address forms and your local officer update forms to Mickela and NOT NATCA national. Mickela will update then update the National database (Unionware).
· Any time there is a change to the local executive board; a ‘Local Officer Update’ form should be filled out and sent to Mickela. Also, please encourage your members to fill out a change of address form every time they move.
· I sent out a designation email to Western Terminal and Western Enroute designating Juan Serna-Spuler as our NWP Hardship Lead; it’s official. If any of you have any questions regarding the hardship process, please contact Juan (juan.serna-spuler@natca.net)
· I would like to give credit when credit is due. I accidentally left off my dear friend and Brother Dave Riley as one of the members who helped with the Web Based Training project. Dave did the audio for the podcasts; thanks Marine.
· Mike Hull fielded a question regarding working hours. Here is the question:
One of our members at Facility XYZ had a seven day week... The last two days (as I understood it) were Admin days. Is this legal? - Answer:
“As long as any time worked after the 6th day in a row was non-operational AND they compensated him appropriately, yes it is legal.”
· We finally got notification that our last member on the ATOP training delay settlement agreement received his backpay. It’s truly a sad testament that the switch to the Department of Interior payroll has been a failure when someone has to wait two years to be financially made whole.
· I had a telcon with Jose Ceballos, Frank McCarthy, and SCT Facility Rep Mel Davis regarding some questions that Senator Feinstein’s staff had for Mel.
· The FAA Administrator’s staff is working on a trip out to the West Coast for Administrator Babbitt. He is tentatively scheduled to visit LAX, NCT, and SCT at the end of August.
· Mike Hull, SFO Facility Rep/NWP LR rep Dave Caldwell and I discussed a termination case out of SCK (probationary employee).
· I worked with ZLA Facility Rep/NWP LR rep Garth Koleszar regarding a self referral, probationary employee termination, and issues with a members medical.
· I was notified by NSO RVP Victor Santore that the FAA and the DOT finally gave an exemption to a military reservist after considerable legislative pressure. About a year ago, Ventris Gibson sent out a memo stating that they would not support any exemptions from military service.
· As a reminder, NATCA does not encourage participation in the NASA Ames NexGen Study for the following reasons:
1. The Agency failed to properly notify us of this study.
2. The Agency failed to give us a start and finish date for the study.
3. No assurance that NATCA will be able to select the participants at the facility we represent.
However, if ordered to do so, comply with that order, file a grievance and notify Mike Hull or I.
· NWP Drug and Alcohol Lead Juan Serna-Spuler, Mike Hull, Garth Koleszar and I discuss a treatment plan for one of our members following self referral. The question was whether the treatment plan constituted a “Last Chance Agreement (LCA)” and whether it was common practice to require total abstinence from alcohol even though the self referral had nothing to do with alcohol. After reviewing the treatment plan, we all agreed that the plan was NOT a LCA. Last Chance Agreements are proposed termination letters held in abeyance while an employee has an opportunity to complete a comprehensive rehabilitation program.
· I received an email from a Facility Rep in the Great Lakes region which reaffirms why we do this job and why the best weapon to deal with management is knowledge. Here is what our good brother from the Great Lakes region had to say:
“I'm the facrep at Facility XYZ, and I attended the 5 region meeting in San Diego in March.
As a direct result of that meeting and the session regarding documentation, we were able to put local management in its place.
One of our supes lost his cool and blew up on a developmental in the TRACON. The developmental was so upset that she asked me to call her to discuss it at midnight. While I was getting the account of the event, the session from San Diego came back to mind. As I was taking notes, I was also emailing everyone that was on the shift with her. Within 12 hours, I had written statements from everyone.
The next day, the developmental was afraid to go to work because that supervisor would be there and instead used 8 hours of sick leave.
I wrote a letter to our manager with excerpts of the statements from those that witnessed the meltdown. The letter was written in a way that they had no choice but to address it, or they would find themselves answering questions from the IG, EEO, Accountability Board, and the region.
In the end, the developmental had her sick leave restored and the supervisor has been put on notice that he will be done if he flares up again.
This would not have been possible if you hadn't organized the San Diego meeting”
· ARCHIE LEAGUE MEDAL OF SAFETY AWARDS: We need your help! The calendar year is now more than half over and we have only received a very small number of Archie League nominations. Please remember that all flight assist events that have occurred since Jan. 1 are eligible to be nominated. We have produced a flyer that talks about this year’s program and how to get more information. Please click here to view the flyer:
http://www.natca.org/assets/Documents/mediacenter/Archie2009flyer.pdf
· Here is a recent case which deals with protected speech. Please “Think, before you Act” and be in control of every exchange with management. Do not allow an exchange with management to cause you to use any threatening remarks or any racially motivated comments.
CASE FILE: AFGE, Local 987 and Department of the Air Force, Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Ga., 109 LRP 31681 (FLRA 05/27/09).
Ruling: The FLRA denied the union's exception to an arbitration award upholding a three-day suspension for a union steward's conduct.
What it means: The FLRA concluded that the grievant's threatening remarks and use of a racially derogatory term exceeded the bounds of protected activity.
Summary: The grievant, a union steward, was suspended for two incidents of belligerent behavior -- once when he spoke to an HR specialist with balled fists and referred to violence against her, and once when a supervisor questioned his whereabouts, and he responded by calling the supervisor an "Uncle Tom."
· NWP OWCP Lead Steve Hefley, Mike Hull, and I worked with HCF Facility Rep Scott Sorenson regarding a member at HCF who recently experienced a traumatic injury at work.
· Our Admin Lead, Mickela, answers questions for PAO Facility Rep Larry Mosley. Happy Birthday to the world’s greatest Regional Admin; today is Mickela’s birthday.
· Mike Hull, ATSAP ERC member Steve McKenzie, and I work with HWD Facility Rep Shane Foskey regarding a recent OE and whether or not it would be covered by the ATSAP agreement.
· In a recent decision from the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission), they partially remanded a decision of the MSPB by finding that the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 applied to an FAA employee who had been improperly removed (instead of being provided with a reasonable accommodation) and reinstated by the MSPB and thus the FAA owed her full back pay (the MSPB had stated that she was not eligible for back pay as an FAA employee).
· I would like to congratulate LGB VP Joe Alvarado and SCT Coast Area Rep Kevin McLauglin for their recent participation in an AOPA webinar dealing with ATC (Web Seminar). Here is what the AOPA had to say about the Webinar:
“The webinar went really well...193 attendees. The highlight was the controllers' input and both Kevin McLaughlin and Joe Alvarado did a fantastic job...honestly. We sent out a survey to attendees and many of the responses indicate that pilots wish there had been more time for Q&A with the controllers. Given the positive response we will do more of these in the future. Thanks again for helping us out”.
· Mike Hull put out the latest edition of the Chronicles of LR, #36, that deals with the “Collective Bargaining Process”.
· I worked with my Marine at MYF, Maliesa Swinson, regarding some recent changes to the training room at MYF. I have asked Maliesa to give her ATM an opportunity to address her concerns. If he is unable to address them, we will address them at the service area level.
· I talked to SEE Facility Rep Brian Orris regarding some changes to the watch schedule which is creating a chronic over 2 hour on position during the morning shift.
· The following was sent out by Western Terminal to all managers:
“Stop or do not engage in negotiations on watch schedules and annual leave under the current contract until further advised. Since the new agreement has been sent to arbitration for those articles that were not TAU'd, neither NATCA nor the Agency wants to negotiate over these items at this time. Any questions let me know. We are also advising all of the RVP's of this guidance. Also, let your local reps know about this ASAP”.
· I worked on finalizing a Hardship transfer for a member at HCF trying to get to the East coast.
· NWP Legislative Lead Noel Kingston sent an email congratulating the newest member of the House of Representatives, Congresswoman Elect Chu. She will be taking the place of former Congresswoman Hilda Solis in the CA-32.
· Mike Hull, ZOA Facility Rep/NWP LR Rep Scott Conde, NCT Facility Rep/NWP Consolidation Lead Steve McCoy, and I had a telcon to discuss the RNO to NCT consolidation.
· I would like to congratulate my good friend and brother from HCF Thom Gurule and his lovely wife on their recent adoption. It took them three years and many trips to Mexico to finalize this adoption. But they persevered and finally got Fernando Leon Gurule to Hawaii where he can hang out with his little sister Alizandra “Ali” Leimana Gurule.
· The HNL 2010 Committee works on finalizing an agenda for their November meeting.
· I worked with Mickela to finalize the September NWP regional membership meeting.
· RETIREMENT SEMINARS-----Two Retirement Seminars will be held in the Western Pacific Region. The first one will be on Monday, September 14, at the Holiday Inn by SCT. The second one will be on Wednesday, September 16, at the Embassy Suites in Los Angeles off the 105 Fwy. Please go to the following website to register and get more info, http://natca.sharmansite.com. You will need your NATCA Member # (if you don't have it ask your Fac Rep, or email Mickela@natca.net).
· Here is the latest update from Tony Yushinsky on the status of the first NATCA Web-based class:
“Today marks the mid-point of the five-week basic labor-relations course. 24 NATCA Brothers and Sisters are enrolled in NATCA's first ever web-based training course, and the feedback is overwhelmingly positive. Everyone is learning from the materials as well as the discussions on the National Labor College's Blackboard. The students range from zero experience to more than 20 years experience and everywhere in between.
Nearly every student has participated, which is quite amazing since we started in the middle of summer vacation time. Members have been great about letting me know when they'll be out of town and have made sure to do the assignments before leaving and catching up when they get back.
We currently have 21 Brothers and Sisters enrolled for our second class, which will kick off on August 9th. The course is free for NATCA members and provides a good basis for new reps or a refresher for the experienced reps”.
· I will be in Portland, Oregon this week attending the National Executive Board meeting.
