Obama Puts Air Safety Back in the Passenger Seat

by Mike Hall, May 1, 2009

For the first time in more than three years, the nation’s National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) has been cleared to land a fair contract with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Yesterday, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the Obama administration was appointing mediators to settle the dispute.

In 2006, the Bush administration’s FAA rejected NATCA’s call for mediation to settle a contract and walked away from the bargaining table. The agency then imposed a set of work rules and wage cuts that have driven controllers out of the towers. Because of the deplorable work environment, more than 2,600 controllers have left the FAA, creating a shortage of experienced controllers and threatening aviation safety.

The FAA under Bush rejected all calls to resume negotiations and threatened to veto any legislation that required the agency to sit down and bargain with the union.

LaHood said Jane Garvey, who headed the FAA during the Clinton administration, will oversee the mediation. NATCA President Patrick Forrey says:

With this bold step, President Obama is fulfilling his commitment to the safety and modernization of the air traffic control system and to the dedicated men and women safety professionals who run the system each day. President Obama is showing the leadership that will guide a positive way forward in which aviation safety professionals will be included as valued stakeholders.

As the president made clear, a resolution to the dispute is critical to stabilizing the controller workforce, restoring a collaborative working relationship between controllers and the FAA and successfully installing the Next Generation Air Transportation System needed to spur economic development and increase the safety, efficiency and effectiveness of air travel.

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