From The President
NATCA Makes Bid to Represent More of the FAA Workforce
NEWSLETTER E-MAIL ADDRESS:
1 Newsletter for 2 Months? What Gives?
To the membership:
First, what you see this month (2 months’ issues combined into a single edition) is an exception and not intended to become the normal format for the newsletter.
The reason for this is the National Meeting and attendant FacRep Training session which was held from October 4th through 6th in Las Vegas. While the meeting was informative and occasionally quite lively; it also interrupted the normal schedules of Wally, the Board and other contributors to this publication. Rather than send out a tremendously late October issue, I took some sage advice from Hawthorne’s Assistant FacRep and combined October’s and November’s newsletters into a single publication. This also allows everyone who contributes to get back on schedule for sending in material for publication and it allows me to get back into sync with production of the copy I send into NAATS Headquarters for distribution.
Speaking of contributors, I would like to see Local News from as many of our facilities as possible. Recent local news reports from Altoona, Bangor, and Elkins show that the news can be about a wide range of topics from kudos for individual efforts to shedding daylight on problems and questionable management practices. Share what you know. We’re all in this together.
In solidarity,
Eli Morrissy
From The President
by Wally Pike
NAATS President
Portions of this article have been distributed to the facilities via the email update. If you, re not receiving the email update please contact your regional representatives.
Compensation negotiations will begin next Monday, October 25. I’ll keep you informed of our progress.
The national meeting in Las Vegas last week seems to have been a success. It was great to see everyone there but it seems we never have enough time. We are slowly receiving the membership vouchers with their comments and we’ll be using revising future meetings accordingly.
One of my regrets was that we didn’t have enough time to adequately discuss the 120 TAUs. In order to avoid unnecessary duplication AK Regional Coordinator Tracey Tideswell has volunteered to collect all questions and we’ll promptly put the answers in the NAATS News and on the web page. You can contact Tracey at (907) 283-8126. Her mailing address is P.O. Box 1769, Kenai, AK 99611; email [email protected].
I would have liked an opportunity to discuss any concerns on the TAUs face-to-face. One question I’ve heard involves the use of the words "will" and "shall". For our purposes these words are interchangeable; both imply that the instant action is mandatory. The different definitions used in air traffic control phraseology do not apply to the labor relations definitions.
One issue we discussed at the BOD meeting is the various seniority petitions being circulated. The feeling is that it is premature to act on these until a majority of the membership has made its wishes known. If a majority of the membership requests a national determination on seniority we will be happy to accommodate.
It’s been a very busy month. We’ve attended the NBAA convention in Atlanta where Public Relations Team members Larry Burdick and Henry Oltman did a great job of representing us. Larry and Eastern Regional Director Ron Maisel are also setting up a booth at the AOPA convention in Atlantic City. Both of these meetings are excellent opportunities for us to spread our message to the user groups and I was glad to be able to attend.
At the time of this writing the FAA appropriations bill is final but the reauthorization is still in limbo. Congressional Representative Hal Gross is staying engaged on Capitol Hill.
I am again requesting volunteers for either short or long term details as national union representatives on work groups or committees. These meetings are usually held in the Washington, D.C. area. If you are interested in this type of work please forward your name and area of interest to me when you can
Wally
- Mike Doring
- Labor-Management Relations
The national meeting is over and we all made it through without many scars. As always it was good to see everyone and would have been more enjoyable if I had not left so much money at the tables. Lessen well learned—until next time.
NAATS has moved forward on case law and a new collective bargaining Agreement. As discussed at the national meeting, we are not yet done. A few sections of Articles are still to be worked out before finality and distribution to the bargaining unit for ratification, but I believe you will be happy. We now start pay issues with the FAA. Your Board of Directors is meeting to achieve a satisfactory Agreement on pay. Stay tuned for further developments later.
Negotiations are a difficult undertaking. We don’t get everything we want, but must decide what is most important to the membership body as a whole, not individuals. I truly believe we have accomplished that fact in the new Agreement. When it is ready for ratification please take your time in reviewing the contents of the new Agreement. Questions should be addressed to your Regional Directors, they all served on the bargaining team and are fully aware of the meaning of the Articles and the difficulty we all had in getting the language.
In negotiations the FAA had it’s agenda and we had ours. At times we thought we would never get done, but miracles do happen. Both the FAA negotiating team and the NAATS team should be congratulated for the time and dedication in producing a very good product. The new Agreement will carry us into the next millennium with the protections you have come to expect from your Union and the ability to move even further in benefits and rights protections for our members.
Again, I request the non-members reading this to remember your fellow employees who are members of the Union have paid to get you this new Agreement. We are all in the same boat and we invite you to join the Union and become more involved in the decisions being made that benefit you. The more members we have, the stronger we will be and the more diverse our membership, the more ideas and concepts flow for the betterment of all Flight Service. Join today or at least by tomorrow.
AIR TRAFFIC PROCEEDURES ADVISORY COMMITTEE
- Andrea Chay
- NAATS Representative
Congress Cuts OASIS Budget
The 97th meeting of ATPAC convened at 9:00 AM, Monday, Oct. 4, 1999, in the Bessie Coleman Conference Center at FAA headquarters. As soon as I walked into the building, I was informed that on the previous Friday, Congress had cut the OASIS budget from $24.5 million to $10 million. Originally, it was budgeted for $40 million, so we are now looking at operating on one fourth of the original budget. We received a briefing on the time schedule for OASIS implementation, which had the last installation completed by Sept. 2002. Now, who knows what this severe of a cut will do to our acquisition schedule, and even the quality of the final OASIS product. I guess we can forget about any of the planned product improvements unless we are able to get some of this funding restored. Contact Hal Gross at NAATS headquarters if you want more information on the legislative details.
No National Data Base for Local NOTAMs
We received the OASIS briefing reference our AOC on NOTAM distribution, especially local NOTAM's. The committee was under the mistaken impression that the almighty OASIS would solve the local NOTAM problem because it would have the greater data storage capability, and be able to store all D, L and FDC NOTAMs. Our briefer, Ronald Richardson explained that no national database of local NOTAMs was planned, and that local NOTAMs would still be stored only locally (per FSDPS family). Thus OASIS will still not solve the problem of pilots satisfying their FAR requirement to have all pertinent NOTAMs prior to take off. The question was also asked about plain text interpretation being available through OASIS, since DUATS will be handled through OASIS with only one vendor. We also requested an update briefing regarding the funding problems for OASIS. The committee is still very concerned about the local NOTAM problem. I reminded them that we in the NOTAM handbook rewrite group were charged with trying to eliminate local NOTAMs and make them all distant NOTAMs. Our briefer was unaware of that requirement, so we still have some coordination and work to do.
ARTCC’s Not Disseminating PIREPs
A new AOC was introduced regarding pilot reports (PIREPs). The sponsor is concerned that numerous PIREPs are not being disseminated when given to center controllers. One day in Sept. severe turbulence and icing conditions prevailed, and PIREPs were not being passed to pilots. After checking the database, numerous PIREPs had been filed, and were available at the National Weather Service, but were not available through DUATS or Flight Service. The procedures for handling PIREPs in the centers was questioned, and the suggestion was to amend the procedures for all air traffic facilities to adopt the same procedures for disseminating PIREPs, i.e. call Flight Service. At the centers, PIREPs are passed to the weather coordinator in the TMU who issues them to the appropriate center sectors, approach controls, and towers, and to the Center Weather Service Unit. Then the CWSU retransmits them to the weather vendors and flight service. I said to have the D side controllers call us, and we would transmit them the most expeditiously. However, many sectors operate with only the radar controller, and they don’t have time to call flight service. The order that centers follow for PIREPs comes under the TMU order 7110.104F. This item will be addressed in a joint FAA/user forum, and we will get an update at the January meeting.
No Fuel NOTAMs to Be Included in
New NOTAM Handbook
The RVR AOC was completed with a status update briefing; more palmtops and systems are being fielded as money becomes available (slowly). The fuel unavailability NOTAM is to be published in the NOTAM handbook Feb 24, 2000.
Budget Shortfalls Hamper FAA
Jeff Griffith visited with us and said ATO is now ATP - Air Traffic Planning and Procedures. ATP-300 is the Flight Service Division; we were able to maintain Division level status. Steve Brown, ATS-2, came in and said the budget constraints are hampering FAA’s ability to buy equipment and keep up with the growth and demand. (We can sure believe that!) The overall FAA budget is $200 million less that what we had last year. The regional jets are having a major impact on the National Airspace System because now, a larger number of aircraft are looking for the same altitudes, but with slower airspeeds. FL290 and above is becoming crowded with regional jets, airliners, and biz-jets, all with differing airspeeds. Airspace redesign alone is costing $9 million, with $6 million dedicated to the New York/New Jersey areas. Plans are to increase the use of datalink for air traffic services, clearance, control instructions, etc. Air traffic delays are being studied more closely, since delays are up dramatically this past year. In summary, FAA’s job is getting increasingly complex, and the money is getting increasingly scarce. Where does that leave us? Not in a good place! OH WELL- ’til next time.
- Daniel Petlowany - ARS Liaison
- Rob Erlick - ARR Liaison
- Donna Holmes - ATP Liaison
- Jim Parris - ATX Liaison
Sorry there hasn’t been much input from DC in the last issues of the NAATS news . We want to welcome Dan Petlowany Rob Erlick as DC Liaisons and know their input and information will be a valuable asset to the NAATS membership. We want to thank Jim Parris for all his hard work as ATX liaison, Jim will be leaving Oct. 18th and we will be welcoming Kate Breem from BDR AFSS as the new ATX liaison.
ATO Becomes ATP
ATO is changing names: We are now called ATP- Air Traffic Planning and Procedures. The command center and day to day operations has been established into a new program called ATT Air Traffic Tactical Operations Program. Dave Canoles is presently acting as ATT-1 and Jeff Griffith continues as ATP-1.
For Flight Service, ATP is looking at the --Renaissance of Flight Service. They have begun this initiative by jointly with NAATS going out to Oshkosh with a pilot opinion survey. We were able to get over 500 surveys filled out. I will publish the results as soon as they are compiled. Thanks to Jim Parris and Dave Hoover for their help. The survey will be put on the NAATS web site with a link off of the AOPA web site for additional input.
The biggest comment made by our users was that the reason they use Flight Service is because of the expertise and Human Interaction. The People make the Difference!! So keep up the good work , Customer Service is our ultimate goal.
The next step we are looking at is a Flight Service Summit. The purpose of the Summit is to provide an opportunity for ATO-300 to gain a greater insight into the needs of our customers; and, gather information on how we as an organization/option can tailor our services to meet these needs. Additionally, this will afford us an opportunity to update our customers on the types of initiatives that are ongoing in the Flight Service Option. Our focus for the 21st Century needs to one that is inclusive of our customers as business partners. The Summit will be the week of Nov. 15th. The NAATS board of directors have been invited and will be funded by ATP.
OASIS
The console survey should have been completed at the facility. A schedule is out as to when a site survey will be done at your facility. If you have not been notified please ask your manager or let me know and we will see if we can get the schedule out to all FacReps.
OASIS Consoles
The contract for new consoles has finally been awarded to Evans Corporation. The new consoles will be purchased in options, with St. Louis, Miami and Seattle being the first sites to receive the new consoles. The plan is to install the consoles in the same order as the planned OASIS deployment, with the console installation being completed at least 30 days before Harris arrives to install OASIS.
LAAS/LAIS
A questionnaire also went around to facilities regarding the ability to provide additional LAAS and the development of LAIS. It was not intended as a request for additional staffing to provide this service but as a way of providing a service to our customers that an independent company would like to do. You may not be able to provide the service at all of your airports with weather reporting but you may have the resources to provide it at the most crucial locations. If we don’t provide the service the FAA has already been approached and is conducting a test for an independent company that would like to do it at no cost to the government.
ACD/BCS Equipment
A letter has been drafted for Jeff Griffith’s signature regarding inhibiting the monitoring capability at all locations and offices other that the Supervisors position and QA. The letter is expected to be signed this week. We will be forwarding a copy of the letter to all FacReps.
There will be a meeting in Fort Worth at the beginning of November to discuss the problems with the BCS phone equipment. We need to document the problems we have found with the BCS so that they may be fixed. Donna Holmes and Rob Erlick will be attending this meeting. There will also be representatives from each Region. Please gather the problems with the BCS equipment that you can find and have them submitted to your Regional ACD representative. Also BCS will be doing a presentation on other capabilities within the system.
AFSS Voice Switch
The AFSS voice switch project to replace the aging Litton and Denro equipment continues down the Acquisition Management System path. The final requirements document and the investment analysis are both nearing completion. After these are finalized, the Joint Resources Committee will review the package and make a funding determination, probably in late November. One of the main features of the new voice switches is that they will allow frequencies and landlines to be remoted to other facilities, thus allowing part timing of facilities. Another features, and potential benefit to Flight Service controllers, is the use of a touch entry display at all positions to access frequencies and landlines. This feature may reduce the workload on the in-flight controllers by "popping up" the frequencies that are activated by pilot transmissions. Other benefits are possible by using software driven system as opposed to the hard-wired frequency selectors we currently use. We’re going to keep a close eye on this one to make sure we get the most user-friendly system possible.
The voice switch project is being delayed once again! This time, the JRC for the project is now anticipated for the end of January, 2000. The reason for this delay is the additional requirements of ATP to include adding new ACD/VRS equipment to the voice switch project or including the ACD/VRS interface into the touch entry display of the voice switch. This is an effort to remove the ugly black boxes at our positions and to fix some of the awkward functionality of the BCS system.
NOTAM'S
I ( Donna Holmes) attended a presentation on YOW by Frequentis corporation on a new NOTAM system they want FAA to purchase. The system is working in Canada however the ICAO portion is still not available at the facilities. I was very impressed with the system, its user-friendly software and the ability it has to be incorporated into the OASIS system. Both GTE and the Military also have similar systems and we are working on a needs requirement statement to obtain funding.
WMSCR
That pesky system that goes down at least once a day, delivering the weather late is finally getting some attention. A requirements team has been set up to help determine if a new system is needed, or if the old system can be enhanced to work properly without the constant delays/crashing.
FAA Proposal to Standardize the Number of RADAR Levels at Inflight
ARS has a draft copy of the retraction letter from ARW for this proposal. I, (Dan Petlowany) have yet to receive the signed official copy. It is supposed to be "in the mail". Apparently, our efforts (and that of others) have put a halt to this proposal. The retraction letter does indicate that further discussion on the subject is expected.
FAA Policy on Weather Avoidance
I ( Dan) received a draft of the FAA's Weather Avoidance Policy, dated April 27, two weeks ago. Basically, it states that the FAA does not separate and never intends to separate aircraft from weather. I was asked by ARW-100 to obtain NAATS comments on the policy, since they have not heard from us (we never received it until now). Wally convened a staff meeting and we developed a response to the draft.
Request for ATS Bargaining Unit Participation
I (Dan) attended a meeting in ARS with a group that is writing a policy document that standardizes the process to request participation of bargaining unit members during any phase of the Acquisition Management System (AMS). This policy establishes ARX as the focal point for all requests from ARS or Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) to obtain union representatives, liaisons or subject matter experts for participation on the identified programs. It also specifies the source of funding for both travel and backfill overtime, if available. Hopefully, this will standardize the process and help avoid issues, such as backfill overtime, in future requests for field participation.
Other Projects
I (Dan) have been serving on the General Aviation Joint Safety Implementation Team, which is chartered to implement recommendations from a previous team to reduce the number of fatal GA weather related accidents. A number of the recommendations affect Flight Service, including Aircraft Situational Display. I have also been coordinating the NAATS portion of the Stand Alone Weather Sensors (SAWS) program. This program affects 10 FSSs in Alaska and 17 AFSSs in the lower 48 states that provide level "C" ASOS weather augmentation. An evaluation of this back-up equipment is taking place at the end of September.
ISE/SUA
Bill Dolan and I (Donna Holmes) attended a meeting held by Jeff Griffith, ATP-1 on the Ft. Worth SUA/ISE system. Jeff positively supported the recommendations from the SUA/ISE Development and Concept Test Report. In essence, the following was discussed and generally received verbal concurrence from Jeff at the meeting (A final version of the Test Report and "official" recommendations is awaiting Jeff's signature and approval):
- Creating a managed SUA/ISE program under ATP
- Providing funding for continuing development and deployment of the system
- Commissioning the initial ISE capability at Ft Worth AFSS
- Purchasing and installing additional systems at other AFSSs
- Expanding the SUA/ISE operation to other AT (Terminal) facilities (Go-Mex project only)
- Improving the accuracy of the SUA data stream. This would involve coordination with DOD to improve the accuracy and timely dissemination of SUA activation times.
- Correcting the NFDC database errors at the entry point
- Completing the testing of the SUA capability when the SUA data stream is reliable. Also, expanding pilot participation in the test - Raising the level of participation by General Aviation aircraft, which regularly fly VFR only
- Testing the lost aircraft orientation potential
- Incorporating ISE services in Free Flight development
- Incorporating the SUA/ISE capability into the OASIS system (since a stand-alone platform was used during the test period but is not recommended for long-term deployment
The SUA portion of the system has yet to be validated. There were significant problems during the test at FTW and testing stopped on the SUA portion. There is a need to validate this portion of the test. An RTCA committee is currently working on a SUA project and would like to use the ISE/SUA system for their test. This is the reason for the site selection as indicated below. However, it looks very unlikely that the system will be available and ready for the Nov test date. The RTCA committee may do a 2-phase test to utilize the system as soon as the problems are fixed.
At this time no other sites have been looked at for testing. Should FTW not have the SUA needed for the RTCA test Ron Dawson has suggested that San Angelo be used as a test site? I will propose this to the RTCA committee at the next meeting.
The cost of getting the SUA/ISE capability up to snuff at Ft. Worth is estimated at $67,900. The cost of putting this capability into Gainesville AFSS, St. Petersburg AFSS, Macon AFSS (RTCA SUA test sites) and DeRitter AFSS and CXO AFSS (Go-Mex project) is estimated at $47,000 per site. The software development for this effort is contingent upon the availability of an AOS person Jim Murtha (who is familiar with this effort). The cost for Jim is approximately $330,000, which includes salary, facility support, equipment, training, TDY, and documentation.
Concerning the establishment of Program management for the SUA/ISE capability, Jeff asked that the effort be separated into two program management areas:
- the portion of the effort to support the Gulf of Mexico project
- the portion of the effort to support the SUA/ISE capability. Jeff also realizes that this project would be funded out of the Ops budget (given no MSN, IPTs, etc).
All in all it was a great meeting and the system has Jeff Griffith's full support. I'll keep you updated as more develops.
Health and Safety Update
- Suzanne Pellosmaa
- NAATS OSH Rep
Federal Worker 2000 Presidential Initiative
On July 2, 1999, President Clinton signed a memorandum for the heads of executive departments and agencies directing the Secretary of Labor to lead an initiative focusing on the federal workplace. The memo asked that all federal agencies help make federal government workplaces safe and productive and to ensure that when injuries do occur, federal employees are given the best care possible and are returned to work as quickly as possible. The initiative has a duration of 5 years, and establishes 3 measurable goals:
Reducing the overall occurrence of injuries by 3% per year, while improving the timeliness of reporting injuries and illnesses by agencies to the Dept. of Labor by 5% per year.
For those work sites with the highest rates of serious injuries, reducing the occurrence of such injuries by 10% per year.
Reducing the rate of lost production days (i.e., the number of days employees spend away from work) by 2% per year.
The memo directs the Secretary of Labor to report to the President each year on the progress made to reduce work-related injuries and illnesses, to provide timely services, and to reduce the number of days injured workers are away from their jobs. The memo closes by stating that this new focus on safety and health in the federal government will result in fewer injured workers, significant cost reductions, and an enhanced ability to serve the American public.
For FY 1996, the lost time case rate (LTCR) for the federal government was 2.67 lost time injuries/illnesses per 100 employees. FAA has three sites that had at least twice the federal government LTCR for FY96. The three sites are: Westbury NY with a LTCR of 11.29, Cleveland OH with a LTCR of 20.27, and Indianapolis IN with a LTCR of 14.29. Department of Labor will be monitoring the figures by site and agency and OSHA will be doing compliance inspections at 10% of the targeted sites.
Based on 1998 data, DOT/FAA annual direct Occupational Workers Compensation Program (OWCP) costs per employee were higher than those of any other federal agency including the Army, Air Force, Navy and Postal Service. The number one reason for OWCP costs for Air Traffic is stress. Air Traffic controllers comprise 64.52% of those on FAA worker's compensation rolls.
In response to this memo, the FAA has hired a full-time program coordinator since March of this year, who has been assigned to the Agency Human Resources branch to manage the FAA’s worker's compensation program nationwide and to work with regional OWCP coordinators to contain costs. AHR, this year implemented chargeback to the Lines of Business (LOB’s) so as to assign accountability for worker’s comp costs and encourage managers to focus on cost containment measures. The FAA has also proposed a committee to be formed to include union representatives and this committee is titled, FAA Reasonable Accommodation Process Committee. The functions of the committee will be a group of “knowledgeable” individuals who will review Worker's Comp cases, case by case, fact-based individualized assessment. The committee will determine what accommodations, if any, can be made to include:
- Reassignment
- Light duty
- Job Modification
- Job Restructuring
- Ergonomic Controls
FAA Order 3900.19B, FAA Occupational Safety and Health Program
An OSHECCOM Issue paper was presented at the last OSHECCOM meeting that I attended this past September at FAA headquarters addressing the 3900.19B order. Agency Environmental Evaluation/Compliance (AEE) has been given the responsibility for developing OSH policy and ANS-500 has overall responsibility for the implementation of the OSH program. It is mentioned in the facts of the issue paper that this order charges lines of business to assume responsibility for establishing OSH programs for their employees. It also says that AEE provides policy and oversight/evaluation and Agency National Standards (ANS) provides technical guidance to assist the lines of business in the implementation of their programs. It mentions that the benefits/impacts of such order does include:
- provides an agency-wide framework for ensuring that FAA workplaces are free of recognized hazards.
- the OSH program crosses all lines of business and embraces all employees, from the level of the FAA Administrator to FAA employees out in the field.
- workers will enjoy benefits of improved working conditions and closer communication with their supervisors on OSH issues.
- the rate of new worker’s compensation claims should decline as the OSH program is assimilated in the FAA culture.
How I assume this process is suppose to work is that the regional safety offices and the centers (OKC and Tech) will receive a copy of this order. Once they receive their copy, their job then is to take the order and formulate their own OSH programs, meaning at least nine regional OSH programs and two Center programs. Supposedly the order is just a set of guidelines and policy and ANS is suppose to help with the implementation of these guidelines and policy. Of course, safety and health rules and regulations do vary from state to state, and these various regulations are supposed to be implemented into regional programs. When I was in the Eastern Region, I had asked our regional safety manager for a copy of the FAA OSH program and he sent me a copy of the 3900.19A, without any modifications or additions. Before I left the region in the fall of 1998, I was given a copy of the proposed Eastern Region Indoor Air Quality program which contained about six pages. In my opinion would not be very helpful at the field level, especially if the facility safety committee has not been properly trained.
My biggest concerns deal with who is ultimately responsible or accountable to ensure that each region does formulate their OSH programs and if they do who will be responsible for ensuring that copies of these programs find their ways to our flight service stations? Here is where I think our regional NAATS OSH reps could do their parts, especially being part of the regional OSHECCOM's. I implore all regional reps to attend all your regional meetings and address this very topic of a regional OSH program and once a program is incorporated, ensure each flight service station within your region does obtain a copy. If there is no regional OSH programs available, then ensure you receive a copy of the 3900.19B for each facility. But I will leave it to you and your regional committee for ensuring that these OSH programs are formulated and if you do have any questions or if you could like a copy of the 3900.19B, please contact me at your leisure.
New Consoles/Chairs
The new console contract has been awarded this past August to Evans Corporation. The new consoles should be in STL AFSS by December and the Human Factors Team will be evaluating the consoles to ensure they meet the user's needs. Funding for the chairs will be allotted to each individual region, so please, regional OSH representatives, ensure this funding will be used accordingly. And please for the specialists’ benefit, hold the region accountable for ensuring that we receive ergonomically correct chairs! I do have the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard reference chairs and I will gladly provide a copy to whomever may want one for their region or facility.
Article 57, Safety and Health
Needless to say that I have disappointing news. Our ergonomics section was deleted and our indoor air quality was hardly mentioned at all. But I would like to say to everyone that Mark Boberick and I gave it our best shot, but since OSHA does not have an ergonomics or indoor air quality standard, the FAA does not want to deal with these issues. I have put together an indoor air quality package which could be helpful to your facility safety committee so please if anyone wants a copy let me know as soon as possible, it could give you the beginning process on where to concentrate reference air quality problems.
Field OSHECCOM Committees
As we all know by now, NFP is currently at a standstill. Well, it was brought to my attention recently that FAA management has ignored or disbanded local facility safety committees using the excuse of being part of the NFP process. I would like to straighten out this dilemma, your facility OSHECCOM is not part of the NFP process and these committees were formed by an OSHECCOM charter which was originally signed by Administrator Hinson himself. The charter calls for establishment of field level OSHECCOM committees. Your facility should have a copy of the charter stating such, and if you do need a copy please let me know as soon as possible. I am hoping by this time that all field committees have been established and trained. If your committee has not been trained please see your regional OSH rep or your Regional Director.
For all of you who did not make it to the national convention in Vegas, I tried to recap for you on the topics that I spoke about at the convention. In closing, I would like to personally thank all individuals out there who have been active in their facilities’ OSHECCOM committee or any individual who really gives a care about their working conditions. You may want to retire with carpal tunnel syndrome, back aches, respiratory problems, cancers, bad eyesight, or bad hearing, but I sure do not want to. Let us all try to be positive and proactive in our quest for a safe and healthy working environment!
- Chuck Kuennen
- Y2K Liaison
October 25, 1999
To start with, let me say I wish I had been able to attend our national convention to see everyone again. Pat Less and I have been working with the FAA Y2K Business Continuity and Contingency Plan (BCCP) Team since last October and it was my turn in the barrel as far as being in D.C. The week of the convention I was involved in a "war gaming" exercise. I intend to answer some of the questions that came up at the convention and give you some background information.
A year ago, Pat and I were invited to help develop risk matrixes for Flight Service which included assessing impact and mitigation strategies for specific system outages. I’m going to bypass the nuts and bolts and just say we put a lot of thought and effort into that document. In July, we began a series of "war gaming" exercises. For those of you who have been in the military, it is similar to an Operational Readiness Inspection and what the Battle Staff experiences. A contract team from Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) in McLean, VA, developed several low, medium and high impact scenarios that were presented to the Core Business Process Team (CBPT) and the Business Resumption Team (BRT) in a controlled environment that simulated the National Operations Control Center (NOCC). Go ahead, penalize me fifteen yards for using four acronyms in one sentence. I will be a part of the BRT on duty at the NOCC for the rollover.
These games were witnessed by members of the IG, GAO and various other VIP’s who thought they were very productive. The games allowed the BRT to collectively think through the implications of different outages across all ATC environments and provide an operational test for evaluation of strategy, concepts, and contingency plans. We were able to identify more work-arounds and had several "lessons learned," which we are working to incorporate in our plans. A very important side benefit of these games, was the opportunity to make the CBPT members aware of how valuable Flight Service is as a support facility for other air traffic control contingency plans.
Let me address your concerns from the convention:
CONCERN: Eight hours of training is excessive. Does training require a training folder entry? Is it mandatory?
ANSWER: The Memorandum to Regional Air Traffic Division Managers concerning training states:
"The objective is to train all personnel who have operational responsibilities or who are required to maintain operational currency. Once the training plan is established, impact and implementation negotiations on the impact of training administration may be required at the local level. All training will be recorded in accordance with Order 3120.4J, Air Traffic Technical Training. Items that shall be covered include: Order 1900.47A, Air Traffic Services Contingency Plan, general notices of alert status, local facility contingency plans, pertinent checklists or procedures, and the Y2K videos."
The attachment to the Memo says training will be conducted in four phases for all operational personnel who maintain currency. Phase I: Video tape (21 minutes) FAA & Y2K. Phase II: Video tape (29 minutes) Y2K & ATC. Phase III: 1900.47A Facility Contingency Plan with some additions. Phase IV: Refresher training (CBI for AFSS Option). Based on the complexity level of the facility that time should not exceed 8 hours per person but could be less at some facilities. The deadline for training completion is 12/18/99. FSDPS may review the tapes and their contingency plans as a matter of familiarization, not training.
CONCERN: Facility management is denying leave for the event periods.
ANSWER: The Air Traffic Staffing letter signed by Ron Morgan was general in nature, and was also a subject of discussion at our Points of Contact meeting. Confusion was generated by the sentence, "If the ATM determines the need for additional staffing to maintain normal operations, that request should be forwarded to the respective regional office". What is "normal", first, keep in mind there are two event times, Zulu (outages related to Zulu time) and local midnight (mostly infrastructure outages like local power and telecommunications). I will address the evening shift or Zulu rollover only. Any pre-approved, prime time annual leave shall be honored. If your facility has an agreed upon minimum staffing level, then that would be considered normal. If your facility does not have an agreed upon minimum staffing level for the evening shift, then it is the facility manager’s decision. For example: the evening shift has seven lines but three of those were approved for prime time annual leave, leaving only four bodies. It is the manager’s decision to have any or all of those slots filled from the day shift with the required seven days notice of course. There should not be any "spot" leave granted until that shift has begun and any sick leave accounted for.
CONCERN: Are we going to staff FSDPS for both event periods 12/31 to 1/1 and 2/28 to 2/29?
ANSWER: Not necessarily for the Leap Year event. If the DAY One event of 12/31 to 1/1 goes smoothly, we should be able to scale back. Conversely, if it does not go smoothly, because of our high profile, we would have to address staffing again. One of the items I am currently working on is a request for all 530’s to specify FSDPS be staffed for both the Zulu and local midnight rollover. I have been in touch with several FSDP facilities to see how they are going to be staffed. The problem is, there is no directive for 530’s to staff FSDPS. The concern here is that some FSDPS may fall through the crack when we believe their support is critical to the AFSS’s.
CONCERN: Management is scheduling OPSUP’s/AMA’s on the rollover watch when they were never assigned to a mid before.
ANSWER: For AFSS’s. Facility managers can assign an OPSUP to the mid if they deem one is necessary. Personally, I would appreciate having one on duty to handle: coordination, especially with the regional office; equipment outages; and to help ensure we are proceeding according to the contingency plan. For FSDPS. Face's have local agreements with their AMA’s to cover other events like the 56 Day Updates without the use of OT as long as there was appropriate advance notice for scheduling. AMA’s should not be scheduling themselves unless they have already requested volunteers and scheduled themselves as a courtesy to the journeymen so one would not have to be assigned.
CONCERN: What about overtime?
ANSWER: The BRT considered overtime in the 5th Supplemental Budget (strictly Y2K OMB money) request for AFSS’s and FSDPS. We do not know yet how much money each 530 will receive. Journeymen in the AFSS’s volunteering or assigned to work the mid, in addition to the normal mid staff, will receive OT. Because this is a special, one-time event and OT has been considered, the 530’s may use OT money which might include the use of AMA’s or OPSUP’s. This should not be viewed as an attempt by management to preclude the use of OT for journeymen. For FSDPS, I would hope the AMA’s would solicit volunteers again to cover the shift, if and when, the 530’s advise they will authorize the use of OT. Granted, this authorization may come too late for many to reconsider because they had made other plans. The FacRep at each FSDP will have to find out through their AMA’s, if OT will be authorized. The BRT cannot direct the 530’s how to use any money they receive. Again, I would hope they give journeymen first consideration for OT.
I am aware that at least one Regional 530 has specified their Flight Watch remain staffed for the rollover. This is inconsistent with the other regions and will be addressed. I tried to justify purchase of a cell phone for each AFSS, but the final decision was they would not be considered for alternate communications because they are terrestrial based. There were a couple of other concerns from the convention that I am still working and will reserve comment on. If you do not see your concern addressed here, call me; 202-493-4829, or email; [email protected]. I will be here through Nov 4th and then again from Nov15-Jan 13.
Clinton Plans New Push to Expand Union's Role in Agencies' Decisions
- Stephen Barr and John F. Harris
- Washington Post
President Clinton will soon urge the Cabinet to comply with an often-ignored executive order designed to increase union participation in federal workplace decisions, administration officials said yesterday.
The White House plans to require federal agencies to file progress reports with the Office of Management and Budget on steps they are taking to improve their labor-management relations. For agencies and unions at odds over workplace issues, the Office of Personnel Management will provide training and other assistance, the officials said.
The White House decision to strengthen "partnerships" between agencies and their unions was reached yesterday during a meeting between administration officials, including White House Chief of Staff John D. Podesta, and federal union leaders.
Since 1993, Vice President Gore has supported "partnerships" that expand the power of unions inside agencies. The issue could be politically sensitive for Gore, because he wants to maintain strong union support as he campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination. The AFL-CIO could endorse a candidate as early as next week and federal unions expect to announce their favorites by year’s end, earlier than in past campaign cycles.
Administration officials said yesterday's decision -- which was a year in the making because of resistance at some Cabinet departments -- was not linked to Gore's election bid. "Nothing has been torqued to accommodate the vice president's run for office," one official said.
Five years ago, as part of Gore's "reinventing government" project, Clinton issued an executive order directing federal agencies to set up labor-management "partnership councils" throughout the government. Gore hoped the order would end the longstanding adversarial relationship between unions and agencies as they adopted cooperative approaches successfully used in the private sector.
Clinton instructed the agencies to negotiate with unions over issues traditionally considered off limits, such as the number of positions, the types of skills needed for specific positions and the kind of software and computers used to perform the work.
From the start, numerous federal agencies expressed skepticism about bargaining over what government lawyers call "permissive" subjects and ignored that part of the executive order. A number of career executives contended that having to bargain over an expanded list of subjects would slow decisions and interfere with operations.
At one point earlier this year, senior administration officials drafted a memo for Gore to send to agency heads containing instructions on complying with Clinton’s order. But the draft memo, which included a pledge form for each agency head to sign, was resisted by some Cabinet departments, including Justice and Treasury.
As agencies grappled with the partnership concept, union frustration grew. Administration officials acknowledged problems in getting the bureaucracy to back partnership arrangements, but pointed to a number of successful labor-management agreements reached at the Social Security Administration, the U.S. Mint and some Defense Department installations.
Still, the partnership initiative appeared to stall in recent months. The General Services Administration, for example, broke off talks with its union and announced this summer it would close eight supply centers by next year.
The union took the decision to arbitration and won a ruling that GSA violated its partnership agreement, the first signed by a federal agency. GSA has defended its decision as a business judgment aimed at stemming financial losses and appealed the arbitrator’s ruling.
Bobby L. Harnage, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, cited the GSA decision during yesterday's White House meeting. Even though GSA officials have said they want to continue as union partners, "our relationship is very strained. . . . They may pick up their marbles and leave again," Harnage said in an interview.
Harnage said he came away from the White House meeting "not completely happy" because Clinton again seems to be exhorting, rather than mandating, agencies to engage in partnerships. But Colleen Kelly, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, said she was "pleased" with the decision to require agencies to file labor-management reports with OMB. "That will keep it on the front burner" and make partnerships "an agenda item for all of the agencies," she said. In addition to the union officials and Podesta, yesterday’s meeting included the government’s top personnel director, Janice R. Lachance, senior OMB counselor Sally Katzen and Gore policy adviser Morley A. Winograd.
By having Clinton reaffirm his support for partnership, the administration hopes to "get the whole government kind of re-engaged," a White House official said.
"We need to jump-start the ones that are not working as well as they should be or not as effectively as we would like them to be," the official said.
NATCA Makes Bid to Represent More of the FAA Workforce
NATCA Press Release
WASHINGTON The National Air Traffic Controllers Association is filing petitions to become the exclusive bargaining unit for an additional 1,400 Federal Aviation Administration employees.
NATCA submitted four petitions on behalf of select non-management employees at the FAA�s Washington headquarters, its domestic regions, as well as staff stationed overseas.
"We’re excited to have the opportunity to represent more of the FAA’s workforce," said Randy Schwitz, NATCA’s executive vice president. "These people work hard everyday and deserve a voice in how their organization is run."
NATCA is a proven effective federal sector union. "We considered all the unions that represent FAA employees," said Wayne Redwine, special agent for FAA security. "We were most impressed by NATCA. This union was selected because it has a proven track record in negotiations and most importantly, its sole focus is working with the agency."
NATCA petitioned the Federal Labor Relations Authority to represent all 846 professional and non-professional employees of the office of the associate administrator for civil aviation security located at the FAA's Washington headquarters, the regions and worldwide.
Three separate petitions were also filed on behalf of 274 workers in the regional logistics division, 180 staff members in the regional accounting and budget division and 100 headquarters employees in financial services.
The organizing process continues when the FLRA reviews each petition and determines the employees are eligible for bargaining unit representation. In an FLRA supervised election, 50 percent plus one of those who vote must select NATCA as their union of choice. At that time, the FLRA will certify NATCA as the exclusive representative of the bargaining unit. The petitioned division's workers can then join the union.
Federal Employee News Digest, Oct 31, 1999
As Congress worked to wrap up the budget for the fiscal year that started October 1, Republican leaders continued to push for an across-the-board cut in all agency programs outside of mandatory spending. In response, the White House and Hill Democrats warned that such spending reductions could cause federal employee layoffs and disruptions in agency programs.
Disagreements over the proposal to implement across-the-board cuts, as well as other budgetary matters, were the main hang-ups preventing final enactment of the remaining budget bills needed to fund the government in fiscal 2000. Both parties were continuing to note that despite their announced intentions to prevent funding lapses and resulting furloughs of employees, partial agency shutdowns were still a possibility in the budgetary end-game.
As the end of a second stop-gap funding measure approached, President Clinton had signed into law eight of the 13 appropriations bills needed for fiscal 2000, covering most of the federal work force and protecting affected agencies from potential shutdowns. However, bills affecting the Commerce, Justice, State, Interior, Labor, HHS and Education departments still were in dispute. Moreover, the proposal for across-the-board cuts could end up being structured in such a way that it could affect even agencies that already have their formal appropriations in place.
The main reason the across-the-board option was still under consideration is that Congress is trying to keep fiscal 2000 spending within limits set by an earlier budget agreement, while not tapping into any of the Social Security fund’s surplus money. Republican leaders also have rejected the possibility of raising taxes to produce more revenue.
Republicans have targeted an across-the-board cut of 1.4 percent, which would include all programs except those designated mandatory, such as spending on earned benefits and interest on the national debt. GOP leaders said that a reduction of that magnitude wouldn’t hurt agencies, contending that there is at least that much wasteful spending in every program. It would be up to the agencies to decide how to meet the cuts.
However, Democrats claimed that the cuts likely would have to be considerably larger. They said even a 1.4 percent reduction would have a significant impact on programs ranging from food assistance and nutrition services to child immunizations, reading programs, and environmental cleanup initiatives.
Meanwhile, alternatives to the across-the-board option continue to be raised. Budget leaders were scouring the books for previously allotted money that so far hasn’t been specifically obligated; canceling such allotments would free up money for the current fiscal year.
Another option being considered was putting off the potential across-the-board cuts until the middle of the fiscal year when new assessments of the government’s income and outgo will be available. Many on Capitol Hill believe the budget situation will turn out better than current projections show, possibly eliminating the need for any such reductions. However, should the mid-year assessments turn out worse, even deeper cuts would be needed and there would be less time in which to accomplish them, which could further aggravate the problem.
For more news of interest to federal employees, see: FENDonline.com
Courtesy of www.fedweek.com
Congress Weighing Across-the Board Cuts
Congressional Republicans are considering a proposal to impose across-the-board cuts on federal agencies that the White House says could trigger federal job layoffs and reductions in military personnel levels. The goal is to avoid having to touch Social Security revenues to stay within spending limits. The magnitude of the proposed funding reductions is a matter of speculation -- estimates run from 1.4 percent to 9 percent. Congressional Democrats and the Clinton administration are fighting the proposal.
DoD HR Jobs Threatened
Buried in the new omnibus 2000 Defense Department authorization law is a provision that furthers along a program that could wipe out a significant number of military personnel administration slots -- a "reform initiative" that seeks to "reduce the infrastructure needed to support military human resource management programs." The initiative, set up under the fiscal 1999 DoD authorization bill,"represents a shift away from the previous disparate personnel systems to a common, integrated system," said the congressional negotiators who approved the language in the 2000 measure. The latest provision designates the Secretary of the Navy to head up the reform and refers to the initiative as an "important project." Note: It’s too early to tell how many HR jobs would be found "surplus" if the pilot program eventually is adopted defense-wide; but it's a sure bet some will.
New TSP Maximum Contribution Rate
The maximum amount federal and postal employees may contribute to the Thrift Savings Plan next year is $10,500, the IRS has announced. That’s a $500 increase over the 1999 limit. This won’t affect most TSP participants, however, since the maximum anyone can contribute to these tax-deferred retirement accounts is based on a percentage of salary -- 5 percent for those under the CSRS retirement system and 10 percent for those under FERS.
Clinton Orders Stepped Up
Labor Relations Effort
President Clinton has told agencies that they must try harder to promote labor harmony through "partnerships," asserting that it makes good business sense and improves service to the public. In a recent memo, he said: "Every effort should be made to develop a plan that helps the agency and its employees deliver the highest quality service to the American people. Whenever possible, workplace issues should be resolved through consensus using interest-based, problem-solving techniques. Agencies should aggressively seek training, facilitation and mediation assistance that can help foster an environment where partnerships can succeed and thrive."
Medical Savings Account Threat Squelched
Chalk another one up for the National Association of Retired Federal Employees, which lobbied successfully this year to kill a piece of legislation it asserts would result in higher premiums and less coverage for Federal Employees Health Benefits program participants. The legislation would set up special “medical savings accounts” (MSAs) that include high deductible catastrophic coverage. NARFE, after securing the help of Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., and other lawmakers, rallied its forces and helped eliminate the bill for this congressional session. The MSA effort, however, may resurface next year. NARFE, which has one of the most effective lobbying operations in the federal sector, says it will be ready again if that happens.
Word to the Wise on Getting Ahead
"The more knowledgeable (a federal) employee has across disciplines, the better job she or he can do, and the more valuable she or he becomes." From a recent speech by Janice Lachance, director of the Office of Personnel Management.
Bonus Word to the Wise (Related Subject)
Here’s what the Merit Systems Protection Board recently said about the need for employees to respond to rapidly changing workplaces and what management's responsibilities should be in this regard: "Federal employees need to begin to think of change and reorganizations as opportunities to show what they can do and not something that they should fear. For this to happen managers will have to give employees the chance to rise to new challenges and the opportunity to fail without damaging their careers."
400,000 Retirement Eligibles
There are about 400,000 federal (nonpostal) employees currently eligible to retire, including about 100,000 who could go out if offered early retirement, according to the Office of Personnel Management. More than two-thirds of the total are under the older CSRS retirement system; most of the remainder under the newer FERS program.
Slow Going on Contract for ATSAC/NAVCanada
7 October 1999
ATSAC/CAW met with NAV CANADA on Tuesday in an attempt to renegotiate the rejected tentative agreement and put together a new deal that will be acceptable by the general membership.
Our team consists of J.P. Duclos, the entire ATSAC Board of Directors along with two CAW representatives, Gary Fane, Director of Transportation and Joel Fournier.
The parties reviewed each Article (1-53), LOU (1-17) and two appendices to make sure we both had the same interpretation of their application. By the end of the day we agreed that there were approximately 25 areas of concern, similar to what the members identified, such as: hours of work, sick leave/wellness program, lieu leave, past practice and of course...money.
We met again with NAV CANADA on Wednesday to confirm the areas of concern and where we will go from there in terms of resolution.
8 October 1999
As you are aware, your ATSAC/CAW bargaining team and NAV CANADA met this week in an attempt to resolve the outstanding issues in order to reach a settlement on a new collective agreement.
After a week of discussions, the outstanding issues were identified and are listed at the end of this bulletin.
The parties reached agreement on the remaining articles of the tentative agreement. Discussions on the outstanding articles so far have failed to bring resolution. Therefore, the Union is preparing for conciliation under the provisions of the previous Canada Labour Code (which applies to us) which will require the government to appoint a conciliator or commissioner.
Your bargaining team has offered NAV CANADA a process of mediation/arbitration to settle the outstanding issues.
This process would involve a fixed amount of time during which both parties would continue to negotiate with the assistance of the mediator/arbitrator. At the end of this fixed period of time, should we fail to reach an agreement, the mediator/arbitrator would then arbitrate the remaining issues which would be binding on both parties and result in a new collective agreement.
To proceed down this route:
- The company must agree to no changes to our present hours of work (NO Shift Logic) .
- If the company agrees to this, you, the members will have to vote to accept this process.
NAV CANADA has requested time to consider our offer and have advised us that they will respond early next week.
Should NAV CANADA refuse our offer, we will be filing to the Minister of Labour for conciliation by October 15th 1999.
October 15, 1999
To ALL ATSAC Members:
The employer in it’s infinite wisdom has refused our offer of Mediation Arbitration if the Hours of Work are off the table. We were surprised that they made such a decision. This clearly means to us that the company intends to stick it to us the same way as they have done to the OSS and the controllers. They have indicated that they want to give you an unpaid meal break, this will increase your hours at work by 30 minutes a day.
A kinder and gentler company (not).
As you were advised in the previous negotiation bulletin the Bargaining Team had a teleconference call Thursday October 14th at which time we made the decision to file to conciliation and to continue the fight on the Maintenance of Actives Agreement (MOAA) under the Canada Labour Code.
The following actions have been approved by the Board of Directors/Negotiations team and will be actioned:
- Filing next week to the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to hear our issue on the MOAA.
- Filing of notice to the Minister of Labour that we have been unable to reach agreement with the company and requesting conciliation.
- Your Regional Director will be holding a teleconference call with all your Shop Stewards by next Wednesday, October 20th to discuss our next steps.
- Your Bargaining Team will be holding another teleconference Thursday October 21st to review the discussion that each Regional Director had and set our course through conciliation.
You can all expect a letter from Mr. Buzz Hargrove President of the CAW, addressed to each of you individually within the next few days. Please read it carefully and if you have any question please contact your Regional Director or the Ottawa office.
It is time for all of us to stay together and ensure that we have an outcome that satisfies our needs.
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