Weekly Update October 2nd

Hello all, we hope this update finds you in good health. It seems as though some rumors have been flying around the facility so we will touch on that quickly.

Apparently Don made a statement at standup this week that we would be returning to BWS within 7 days. Management has yet to engage in any talks with us about that, so we are not sure why this was said. Although we have no way of guaranteeing how long we will remain in a 5 and 5 schedule, we can guarantee that NATCA will be part of those conversations and ultimate approval to return to BWS will need to come from the district level. The Eboard will continue to work closely to do what is best for the facility based on traffic levels and operational need. As soon as discussions begin that signify we need to return to BWS, we will update the membership.

There are also a lot of things going on around the facility to prepare for phase 2 of the training resumption plan. Please know that these requirements need to be met but are independent of whatever schedule we happen to be on. With this you will see a decrease of seating in the cafeteria along with an increase in seating being socially distanced. Please leave the seating arrangements alone as they are part of the requirements set forth to continue bringing people back into the facility.

With that we would like to remind everyone that mask usage when unable to maintain social distancing is required. This includes relief briefings, training, cafeteria usage and any other area where social distancing is not possible. Although we have not had issues in our facility up to this point, there are facilities around the region that have pursued disciplinary action due to non-compliance. Please continue to stay vigilant in your mask usage and hold each other accountable.

As always we are here for you when you need us. We will continue to keep you updated as new information comes to light or things begin to change around the facility. Please reach out with any questions you may have and let us know what we can do to better serve you.

In Solidarity,

Derek Adams and Amy Sizemore

Weekly Update September 25th

Just a quick update on some things going on this week.

First we have officially resumed training in a limited capacity. This includes those partially qualified that were staffing as well as a few supervisors that were staffing but now will be moving to their respective areas to train. The timeline for phase 2 of the training resumption plan is still unknown but the talks will be ongoing and information will be pushed out to the membership as we get it.

Thank you to all of those that made it out for the virtual town hall meeting with the Northwest Mountain leadership team. There were a lot of great questions and conversations. I (Derek) have been actively participating in these meetings with facilities around the region, and I am continually proud of what a great facility we have at ZSE. Not to say that we don’t have our own issues now and then, but after hearing about some of the working conditions elsewhere, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

Finally, the MOUs are officially signed. As you probably know, they are a complete rollover of the MOUs from last year. The eboard will be working towards setting a date to begin bidding as soon as possible and we will probably have a couple virtual meetings to brief the MOUs if there are any questions that have come up since last year. More to come on that in the next week or two. 

As always, thanks for all that you do and your flexibility as we continue to navigate these unprecedented times. Please call, text or email with any questions or concerns. 

In Solidarity,

Derek Adams and Amy Sizemore

Weekly Update September 18th

Just a reminder and to share the link for tomorrow’s town hall with the regional leadership. This is your chance to get the tough questions answered about everything from covid to the TikTok ban. We hope to see you even if you don’t have questions, it’ll be nice to get together again. We’ve set aside two times to choose from to help better meet your schedule needs (or attend both if you want.)

Before joining a Teams meeting on a computer or mobile device, you can download the Teams app HERE.  Otherwise, you will can participate via the Explorer or Firefox web browsers. It does not work with the Safari web browser.

If you’ve never used Teams, you may want to click the meeting link below 10-15 minutes prior to ensure that you are able to join and become accustomed to the features.  The visit will be interactive and we will be utilizing several functions (e.g. “raise hand”, chat). 

Join Microsoft Teams Meeting (1100 PDT)
+1 253-240-0613   United States, Tacoma (Toll)
Conference ID: 103 577 329#

Join Microsoft Teams Meeting (1800 PDT)
+1 253-240-0613   United States, Tacoma (Toll)
Conference ID: 951 608 490#

Please feel free to call/text us if you’re having troubles joining the meeting, we can try and help you out.

Hope to see you there!!!

Derek Adams and Amy Sizemore

Weekly Update September 11th

Holy moly what a crazy week! We both evacuated our homes as I am sure a lot of you had to as well. As of earlier today it sounds like they are beginning to lift the evac orders so hopefully we all can start making our ways back home as soon as possible.  

Town Hall Meeting

Next Saturday the 19th, at 11am and 6pm, we are going to have a virtual town hall meeting with our regional leadership team. The pandemic and COVID has been the driving force with this but doesn’t have to be the only topic. We decided on having two meetings so that you can pick which works best for you. We will send out the link as it gets closer.

Tony Germann Going Away

As most of you know, Tony Germann is taking an opportunity as a TMC in ZLA. Since our normal send offs are not possible right now so we’re having a virtual send off tomorrow at 6pm. It would be lovely to see your faces! Please click here to join.

Hopefully things will start to calm down soon and we can get back to normal!

Derek Adams and Amy Sizemore

Weekly Update September 4th

Good Afternoon! Hope this past week has gone well for you all!

Archie League Winners

You may have seen this already but we are proud to announce Josh Fuller, Mike Sellman, Brian Hach, Byron Andrews and Ryan Jimenez as the Northwest Mountain Region’s winners of the Archie League award. This group of controllers guided Tim Bendickson, the pilot of a C-182, to safety and ensured his family was able to see their father/grandfather again. This story is amazing enough on it’s own but the story you won’t read anywhere else is one of working together toward the common goal of safety. We could not be more proud of our controllers from two different areas coming together to save lives. Though the Archie League award will only have five names on it, every controller at Seattle Center’s commitment to teamwork saved this man’s life. Normally we would honor them at Communicating for Safety this September but due to the pandemic, the awards banquet will be held during Convention this coming May. 

If you’re interested, this link has the story along with some pictures and audio from the actual event.

Training

We are starting to plan for some OJT to begin but it will not include everyone to start. NATCA and the Agency have determined this will only involve the partially certified people on a crew right now. Since these things affect the OJTI as well as the Developmental, here are some of things you can expect:

• PSS - Personal Safety Supplies. Masks will be worn for all individuals when training is in progress when 6 feet (or whatever the current CDC minimum, the document is designed to change with the CDC recommendations) cannot be maintained. So, that would include the D side if the training is conducted on the R side, vice versa, to include the FLM if they are also plugged in. 

• OJT hours will not be “reset.” There will however, be an additional set of hours available but not required to be used. So, it will be different for each trainee. 

  • Formula: hours used+target hours for that sector= new target hours.

  • Minimum hours have not been changed and Article 67 “spool up” time will be accomplished before utilizing OJTI hours.

• In the past, some training teams have waited for “good traffic” to conduct a certification. It is important to remember that this is the new normal and it may be a very long time until we see the traffic we used to see. If there is a specific skill set that needs to be observed for the certification to be complete, that should be able to be accomplished in the simulator. 

These are just a few of the items within the official Training Resumption Plan, the full plan can be found here. The Operational Readiness Workforce Plan provides direction for Air Traffic facilities related to social distancing, cleaning, signage, etc and can be found here.

It is important to remember that this guidance only gives us the parameters for when we start training and that it will take some time to collaborate a plan with management and to ensure the safest possible start to training.

Virtual Town Hall Meeting

We will have a town hall meeting Saturday September 19th at 11 am and 6pm. This will include our regional leadership to answer any questions you may have. More details and a meeting link to follow shortly.

In Solidarity,

Derek Adams and Amy Sizemore