Facility Update January 10th

OJTI Pay Increase

The new 25% OJTI pay starts on Monday. It will take a little while for the FAA to catch on to paying it out, so it would probably be beneficial to keep track of your OJTI hours for the next couple of pay periods. Next week also marks the beginning of OJTI pay for providing instruction for assigned simulation training, stage training, or skill training in simulator labs. In the future, you can expect to utilize CruART to track this time, but it is not quite ready yet. Until then, there will be paper sign-in/sign-out logs available. When you are done for the day, please leave them in the wooden tray near the CruART computer in the TTL. It would not surprise me if management actively looks for people adding to their time, so please remember to keep it accurate and for only the time you are running the problem.

Bid Survey Results

We had 34 responses to the survey, a pretty even response across the areas. Here are the results:

It looks like the majority of people that we heard from would like things to stay the same. So unless some significant new change comes out before the next bidding season, we will probably start out bidding RDOs, Round 1 AL, and the OT limited/available week at the same time. Most people we heard from do not favor stronger skip language.

On Your RADAR

We have been brainstorming ways to ensure your voice is heard and you always have access to a rep. The bid survey form seemed valuable and accessible, so I thought we’d try it out. HERE is a form that can be used to get your questions/comments/concerns to us if you don’t see a rep at the time. This doesn’t alert anyone when a response comes in, so please continue to contact your rep if you have something time-sensitive.

Representational Rights

It is no secret that this new front office regime has a very different vibe than what we’re accustomed to at ZSE. They are encouraging managers to be more disciplinary than ever before. Management will not involve us in disciplinary action without your permission, so we won’t know what’s going on if you don't contact us. You might have seen this cards floating around but just in case, here they are again:

I still have some of these cards, please let me know if you’d like one.

In Solidarity,

Amy Sizemore

On Your RADAR Form

A Message from Your Local Executive Board

All,

As we kick off the new year, we wanted to reach out and address some of the issues being talked about and give your our thoughts on recent events.

Contract Extension and Pay

We wanted to first address the contract extension. Pay remains the Union’s top priority, and rightfully so. But here’s the reality—increasing pay isn’t something that can be achieved through contract negotiations alone.

The FAA can’t meet its current pay obligations without requesting exceptions from OPM every January to pull funds from other budget lines. This isn’t a failure of the Union—it’s a systemic funding issue. Unless Congress appropriates additional funding for the FAA, no amount of negotiation, leverage, or arbitration can force the Agency to pay what it doesn’t have.

Since sequestration cuts began in 2013 (remember getting furloughed?), the FAA’s budget has remained essentially stagnant, while our salaries have increased over 40%. Nearly all FAA funding comes from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF), which was gutted during the pandemic. Without Congressional action to increase funding, substantial pay increases simply aren’t possible.

This is why extending the contract wasn’t a binary choice between negotiating pay and maintaining the CBA. The extension didn’t cut off our ability to address pay, it preserved our ability to have pre-approved Annual Leave and the ability to negotiate how we take it, among many other things. It also ensures we avoid negotiations under unfavorable conditions, especially with an administration that has shown little interest in supporting labor. The extension was a necessary and strategic decision.  It’s not ideal that increased pay wasn’t included in the extension, but it isn’t possible without Congressional action.

Let’s Do This Together

If you have ideas or concerns, now is the time to step up. The convention is your chance to shape our direction and make a real impact. Submitting a proposal is easy and effective. The deadline is January 9th at midnight—don’t wait. If you need help, reach out to Drew. Several of us are submitting a policy statement urging our Union to push for a Congressional funding fix—because without it, addressing pay simply isn’t possible. We encourage you to take similar action. The FAA has never been, and will never be, an advocate for you. Without a strong Union, you have no voice.  

Our local meetings are another valuable way to make your voice heard. Unfortunately, they’re often lightly attended, meaning important perspectives are left out. Let’s change that and ensure everyone has their opinions heard. Use your voice—don’t lose it. 

The post bidding survey has had only 25 participants. Please click HERE to fill this out so we know how to proceed in the fall. Deadline is January 5th.

In Solidarity,

Your Local Executive Board

Facility Update December 20th

We have been working all week on this email, adding to it as things came up. But we got a major bombshell dropped on us at 11am this morning and so I’ll put the new info first and then leave the rest of the email below that.

Slate Book Amended

We had a last-minute telcon for the FacReps this morning, where it was announced that the NATCA and the FAA agreed to amend the current contract's end date to August 2029. The National office sent out an email to the entire membership right after the call ended with all the details. This included a slide show of everything we talked about and links to the 3 townhall meetings that are scheduled to give the membership the full briefing. The are scheduled for Dec 21 at 9am, Dec 22 at 7am, and Dec 23 at noon. We highly recommend that you attend one of these briefings. Each briefing will have a Q&A portion at the end with the ability to put your question in the chat if you prefer. Please do not hesitate to ask questions. HERE is the link to the national email in case you can’t find it in your inbox

Government Shutdown

NATCA National sent out an email today (HERE if you can’t find it in your inbox) outlining a lot more of the details but I will just leave the Cliff’s Notes version here:

• First and foremost, the contract is not suspended just because the government is shut down. Your rights remain the same.

• If this turns out to be a long term shut down, all employees will receive a regular paycheck for the period (PP-26) covering Dec. 1, 2024, through Dec. 14, 2024, on Dec. 24, 2024. The current pay period (PP-01) runs from Dec. 15, 2024, through Dec. 28, 2024. Paychecks for that pay period will be paid on Jan. 7, 2025. If the shutdown is not concluded by approximately Dec. 31, 2024 (the deadline for payroll changes), it is likely that federal employees will receive a partial paycheck for PP-01. 

• The Government shutdown FAQ is HERE.

It’s important to remember that any discussion about a coordinated absence—even as a joke—is a serious matter and could lead to termination. This is not something to take lightly, and we must all approach it with the professionalism that defines us as Air Traffic Controllers. I know you’ll continue to focus on keeping the NAS safe, as you always do. We excel under pressure and rise to meet challenges, and I have no doubt we’ll get through this together, as we always have.

Post Bid Survey

So far, we’ve received only 19 responses to this survey. Please take minutes to complete it so we can accurately represent the membership’s wants. The link is HERE. Responses are due by January 5th.

All Members Meeting

I know you all have been itching to find out when the next all members meeting is and it’s officially set! We will be meeting on 2/4 at 1pm. The food will arrive at 12:30 and the meeting will be at 1. We are open to suggestions on the food, please let us know what you would like or we will just get Costco Pizza.

At this meeting, we will receive a briefing from Disaster Response Committee Member Joe LaPorte (S46).

We will also be voting on proposed changes to our Local Constitution. The proposed change is linked HERE. The short version is that we are proposing a change to how Alternate Area Reps are selected. We want to line it up with the BWS bid (as opposed to running the full 2 year term with the Area Rep) so that Area Reps can attempt to have someone on the other side of the schedule should they so choose. The change would also give them the ability to switch Area Reps during the year if they need to for whatever reason. This was just an oversight in the original change we need to correct.

T Shirt Drawing Winners

Congrats to Zach Deubler (D Area) and Alex Mathers (C Area) for winning this month’s drawing! Your next chance will be on the 15th of next month, which falls on a Wednesday.

National Constitution Amendments

NATCA’s 20th Biennial Convention is coming up, May 9-11, 2025, in San Francisco. This is your opportunity to help shape the future of this union. You don’t need to figure out all the official sounding language, Drew is our local constitutional expert and can help you form your idea into a presentable form. These are due by January 9th so please get in touch with him soon if you have anything you’d like to submit.

I know this was another long email and if you made it this far, thank you. I will keep putting out information as I get it as it pertains to the shut down.

Have a great holiday season,

Amy and Drew

Facility Update 12/4

Post Bidding Survey

We asked the members present at the June all members meeting, but since bidding just finished, I would like to see if people’s opinions changed. We want to ensure we are pursuing changes that the majority of the membership is interested in. Please complete this short survey by 1/5. I will post the results when they are done.

OT Availability List

HERE’s the final list, if you see a discrepancy, please let your area rep know right away so we can get that fixed. This one won’t automatically update when changes to “available/limited” are made, but of course, the dates will stay the same regardless. Please save this so you’ll have it to reference throughout the year. Still no word on exactly where this will be stored but when it’s done, there will be a TEAM message about it.

Clarification on Working OT During Limited Periods

A question was brought up during the OT briefings regarding whether or not there is a situation that you could conceivably work during your limited weekend. During the briefings, I (Drew) gave the answer that you could only swap into working on your limited weekend, the agency could never assign or solicit it. When we reached out for clarification from the Fatigue Team we got a slightly different answer. Their answer (the official answer) is that you definitely cannot volunteer to be available that weekend. However, if there is an OT shift that otherwise would go unfilled, you could request to work it during your limited week. This is something that would have to be done on a case by case basis and would almost certainly have to be for OT scheduled in advance, not call in. The agency still cannot solicit this, this must be employee driven. I know this might only further convolute things for you, we are all learning this new world order together. So please feel free to reach out with any questions.

NATCA Shirt Day

Just a reminder: the 15th is coming up quickly! Don’t forget to wear your shirt for a chance to win a $25 gift card to either Bigfoot Java, McLendon’s, or The Rock.

TSA Precheck

Did you know you are eligible for free TSA pre-check just by having a secret-level security clearance? It’s a super quick process, but you must do it on a government computer. HERE’s the FAQ if you’re interested.

Voluntary Leave Bank

Open enrollment for Voluntary Leave Bank Membership will be from Monday, October 14, 2024 through Monday, December 9, 2024 and membership will be effective January 12, 2025 for the upcoming 2025 year.

What is Voluntary Leave Bank?

A Leave Bank is a pooled fund of annual leave contributed by its members, combined with annual and sick leave donations made by the federal workforce, that is administered by the National VLB Program Manager and Leave Bank Board.

• Eligible members can participate in the program to:

• Cover time out of the office as a result of a personal or family medical emergency

• Bonding with a newborn, newly adopted, or newly placed child within one year of the qualifying event

Note: Bonding is only available for consecutive leave usage and cannot be used intermittently.

This program is different than the Voluntary Leave Transfer Program, here’s how:

WMT Scheduled Outage

On Tuesday, December 10, at 1500 ET, WMT Scheduler will be updated and will be down for approximately one (1) hour. The update includes several bug fixes and, most importantly, adjusts the shift duration validations to allow the entry of a six (6) hour shift. This is to comply with the new fatigue rules that go into effect on or before January 12, 2025, which allow for a six (6) hour fatigue shift immediately preceding a midnight shift. Please note that this update does not incorporate any changes to the validations for the new fatigue rules. In other words, warnings will not be displayed if shifts are assigned with less rest than required by the new fatigue rules. We are working with the Agency to update these validations and warning messages and expect this to be completed early next year.

Have a great weekend,

Amy and Drew

Facility Update 11/25

OT MOU briefings have started today. Expect to hear from your area rep to select your rotation line, limited/available status, and whether you would like to be on the yes/no list.

T-shirt Raffle Winners

I was off-site last week and couldn’t draw the names as soon as I usually like, but this month’s winners are Jackson Yang and Robert Marshall. They will get a choice between a $25 gift card from The Rock, McLendon’s or Bigfoot Java. We had 19 entrants this month.

Member Family in Need

Last week, after tragic circumstances, one of our NATCA family’s children were left without both parents. This is a difficult time of year to ask but if you can, please consider supporting this gofundme for the children.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Amy