Breaking News! Contract Talks To Begin!

I have it on good authority from a high ranking FAA type that NATCA and the FAA have reached tentative agreement to return to the bargaining table to finish the air traffic controller's contract.  This agreement came after a hush-hush meeting between the parties and Congressman Steve LaTourette of Ohio. 

The word I have, which again is tentative, is that the parties will return to the table sometime in July with smaller teams in an effort to complete bargaining on the outstanding issues left on the table when the FAA declared impasse on April 5th of 2006.  Any issues not bargained to agreement would be submitted to binding arbitration under the terms of the yet-to-be-signed ground rules.

My source was silent on the final disposition of the Group-of-Five negotiations, which went to impasse and imposition before the air traffic controller bargaining unit.

The FAA is understandably concerned with congressional intervention in this contract dispute, the Micas of the world notwithstanding, and the House language that will touch off conference negotiations is strongly in NATCA's favor.  Combine that with an overwhelming vote on the LaTourette Bill last summer and the other legislative fixes that were on the cusp (Kelly-Costello, Obama, etc.) and you have a recipe for forced legislative change in the dynamic of labor negotiations at the FAA. 

My sources tell me there will be no return to the green book contract in the interim.  The information I have also seemed to indicate that settlement talks could include a remedy for outstanding LR issues (like the quarter million grievances currently in the system,) but that nothing was signed yet on these points.  Apparently individuals from each side have been tapped to come up with ground rules.  My sources were also silent on what an arbitrated settlement would mean for a ratification vote by the membership...I think perhaps that one is in the "we'll cross that bridge when we come to it" category.

I have been sitting on this story for several days.  The spy network has been alive with chatter about emergency NATCA telcons and 10th floor FAA meetings, but I didn't want to say anything and possibly jeopardize the progress being made.  Then overnight I received two emails from far afield asking me if I knew anything about the tentative agreement (one of them even including some confirming details,) so I feel comfortable that the particulars are leaking out there quite nicely without me.  I also waited to get confirmation from a second source regarding the underlying premise, which I was able to accomplish yesterday morning on some details and overnight on others. 

In somewhat related news, I have it from two manager sources that the all-Air Traffic Manager (ATM) Training will be conducted the third week of August this year in Washington, DC.  What started out as a refresher on the White Book may end up being a briefing on the new agreement.

Congratulations to everyone involved in getting contract talks re-started.  Let's hope the parties can come to an agreement that serves the system, the users and the employees.  It would be nice if the agreement took the intimidation and fear out of the workplace and replaced it with collaboration and healing, too, but one step at a time, folks...one step at a time.

Comments

[bud]

fantastic news if true!!!

[Todd Wilhelm P50]

Checking calendar to make sure it's not April 1...

[Skeptic]

That's quite a bomb you just dropped John, and I can see why you would be chomping at the bit to drop it. I just hope it isn't another sleazy ploy by the FAA to take the heat off our language issue. Show congress they are willing to negotiate thus no need for our wording, then pow! Right in the kisser again.

[ceceya]

18 years of working for the FAA has taught me well---I will believe it when I see it. However, this is good news and I am merely being cautious.

[It's all about me.]

Thanks John,

Certainly great news.
Let us just see what they will negotiate before we all start patting us on the back.

Pay, staffing, and 6 day work weeks are here to stay for some time now. plus all the retirements and bad morale FFA wide.... someone has to be accountable for that.

Lets wait and see.

We miss you JTB fighting for us on the patrole.

[nwprlc]

"Pay, staffing, and 6 day work weeks are here to stay for some time now. plus all the retirements and bad morale FFA wide.... someone has to be accountable for that."

All true, but the psychological impact of a return to the table without benefit for FAA of being able to run to Congress to impose their version of a contract, would be enormous. We'll see how sh*t hot of a negotiator Joey Mincemeat is if he has to sit across the table from Barry and can't pull the Title 49 pistol out of his back pocket.

[wesl]

I hope this isn't a ploy to keep people on the hook thru the summer only to screw us later. Not that I'd expect that but...as they say in Attica, "Bend over and smile".

[R Walker]

As retirements accelerate, and the delays set new records, what better way to keep a few of the undecided and retirement eligible, through the summer when you need them most?
As a sign of good will, return to the green book first, then negotiate.

[wahoo1]

This IS a ploy, without question. An effort to distract the political efforts that have been making headway until this reauthorization slips through the cracks. I HOPE our leadership KNOWS this and continues EVERY effort to get out language into this Reauthorization. Sure, send some folks back to the table, of course. But stay MORE FOCUSED on the bill language please.

[M Ott]

Assuming this information is true, not your bomb to drop. Shame on you John.
I will wait to hear from our current NATCA president.

[jamjets]

We'll see.

What will not change is the destruction that has been done over the last many years to the NAS.

What will also >not be undone< is the trust and spirit that was destroyed when so many FAA brain stems went drunk with power and attitude.

I will NEVER forget or forgive the people that participated in that. NEVER!

You can still show me headed for the door in 6 months.

[ramjet]

good news if true--but we'll see.

jamjets--you must forgive, just don't forget. there's a difference.

[cth]

I agree with M. Ott. Tacky - Self-serving - Dumb move - Very sad.

[ME]

Sorry if I am pessimistic, but I don't trust the FAA's intention and will not rest easy until we have a ratified CONTRACT. I do appreciate the post of info.

[a concerned citizen]

Hope its true, and don't really care how the info was disseminated!!!!

[Whaaat?]

Since the original "negotiations" were nothing but a sham, returning to where they left off is no great deal. We want the green book back and a fresh start from scratch with real negotiating. Nothing else will stem the outgoing tide of controllers.

[Joetech]

The laws still need to be changed. I certainly hope Natca and other unions still pursue this course.

[Wounded Soldier]

The bombs that have dopped on my workplace have left the place shattered and near ruined. Fatigue is still rampart amoung the remaining troops. Like wounded soldiers we carry on. It will take a new generation before these wounds heal. We must never forget what has been done.

[KC]

As a NATCA Fac Rep, our Facility NEVER left the Green Book, to hell with the unilaterally imposed (jail house) work rules.

[lowskillset]

While this news is somewhat encouraging, I believe it is indeed a ploy. I wouldn't slam the door on the Agency offer to negotiate, but I would proceed full steam ahead with the Title 49 legislative fix until either that fix is obtained or until a complete agreement is reached between the parties. And I wouldn't let the offer of negotiations distract the Union's efforts on the legislative side at all. (Remember John when Marion chastised you for trying to influence the legislative process while at the same time negotiating with the Agency?) It's interesting that this overture is made while the very fix for the problem is in the reconciliation committee!

[You'rekidding]

"Caution is the eldest child of wisdom." Victor Hugo

[New Guy]

As a recent graduate (May 2007) it would be great if all this actually panned out and we had a new contract in a few months, hopefully about the same time I'll be starting.

[brad]

I would bet money that this is a ploy to tell congress "see we are negotiating" and get congress to drop the title 49 stuff and the status quo ante. As soon as that is dropped and the bill through congress I fully expect the FAA to comeback and say...impasse again..IWR sorry have a nice day. I trust Marion Blakey and the rest as far as I can throw them into a hurricane. They have the FAA in a nose down attitude, pushing the yoke forward, opened the gas tanks and are lighting the match as she bails out to her PR firm in a couple months. The congressional angle is a Joe Minace special as I see it. The FAA hasnt shown good faith bargaining as yet..why start now? How many units have contracts? This is a sham to get peoples hopes up only to thrown their hopes and their bodies into the fire come October if not sooner.

[Tony Williams]

Thanks, John, for passing on the info. Sorry that some folks have a problem with you as the messenger.

Without a return to the contract, then negociations, I'm not sure we have anything but a ploy, as others have stated. How "convenient" that we're on the cusp of fixing the title 49 issue, and jamming some well deserved rules down their throats.

The agency knows we're starved for this kind of news, and it may politically keep some retirees on board through the summer when they (privately) know they absolutely need them.

Too much in it for them, and as we've seen, they aren't doing ANYTHING as a friendly gesture.

I'm confident that should we actually get a ratifiable contract (and frankly, that's a REALLY LONG shot), Mr. Krasner and company are the ones who can do it.

Tony Williams
Airline Pilot

[Elena Nash]

You blew it for us once, now you're trying again? Hey John why don't you Shut the Fuck Up for once. It in not your place to be the messenger. You had your chance. You truly don't get it do you. All of your great ability to write and speak but no sense of when to use it.

[ken lumetta]

A dim light at the end of an otherwise very dark tunnel!
thanks for the scoop!

[less than gruntled]

Hey Elena,

You kiss your mother with that mouth?

[gracie]

i just hope we aren't getting hoodwinked. thats one thing the agency is good at.

[DubD]

Elena needs a hug. John, keep up the good work. I, for one, would love to see something from our leadership, but all I get is glossy brochures that say nothing.

[faahater]

if all we have left is to Blame this "old and worn-out Controller" for the future outcome of the IWR's...then shame on us! But then again; someone need's to be the escape-goat!

[keep clam]

JTB,
I, for one, am happy to see you post anything. I can decide for myself if I want to believe it or not. I am getting precious little information from natca dc. I cannot understand why anyone would think that you, as a private citizen, can not/or should not, post whatever the hell you want. To Elena, STFU yourself. No one makes you come to this blog website, no one forces you to read it. You obviously didn't vote for Carr, then why would you even care to read the stuff here? WTFO?

[STFUElena]

JTB, I have to agreed with the others about keeping up the good work. The dumbass' like Elena are part of the reason the FAA is FUBAR. She'll probably become a manager since she already talks like one!

[Just Another CTI Student]

A few things...

1. This does not sound to much like a ruse to me, if it was a ruse wouldn't the FAA be pushing the fact that they are "talking" to NATCA about "fixing" the nontract to Congress? It doesn't seem like they are waving this in front of Congress which helps me believe this could be true and that they want to fix this with as few people as possible in Congress or the Public knowing so they can save their own butts.

2.I am glad people, not just JTB, are posting all this information. As a Junior at a CTI school I know first hand how little information is getting out to the students. I point everyone I meet at school to this site and others like it, rather then the NATCA Home Page which has almost zero public information on it. I understand that NATCA has no true obligation to tell the CTI students what's going on, but they should care about keeping us in school, instead of watching the ones who understand whats going on leave. NATCA should really get out and start getting a presence on these college campuses. All we hear is very very little from the FAA so most students think that everything is "A-OK", while the one's who hear the horror stories are leaving to pursue other careers. Most CTI Students don't even know that there are public job postings, when they are going to school and paying through the nose for a no longer needed degree. Why isn't NATCA pushing to get the FAA to recruit right from the CTI Schools? Many of us meet the minimum requirements, and already have the desire and the passion for the job that many of the current controllers have but are getting discouraged with all thats going on. According to my sources in the administration of my school, we actually had to reject quite a few applicants because there isn't anymore room in our CTI program. There are not enough instructors and lab space just isn't big enough to accommodate all the people now applying. If the FAA started to pick people up that are already in school, perhaps some space could be freed up and more CTI students could be placed in Marion's imaginary pipeline of surplus CTI's.

I'm sure I'll think of more to say later, but I can always be reached by email if anyone has any comments they wouldn't like to post here.

--JustAnotherCTIStudent@gmail.com

[pr E10]

You of all people should know that keeping quiet during negotiations is important. Please do me a favor and keep your mouth shut. If your BLOG submarines the chance that the FAA and NATCA get back to the table , and the chance to get back some of the money I lost because of the IWRs, then the cost to my family will not only be on the FAA shoulders but yours as well. Retire, please. Let it go. You fought a good fight, it is time for you to focus on your kids, wife, and golf. Your actions lead me to believe that it is no longer about doing what is best for NATCA and controllers, but rather it is more about you trying to make yourself important.

Plato once said " A wise man speaks because he has something to say, a fool because he has to say something."

Quit being the fool.

[Scott P]

Who cares where the info came from. It is not a good idea to go back to the tau-ed articles and just work on what was not finished. Not blaming the contract team. They did an excellent job, but in the process of hoping the FAA would actually do the right thing with pay I believe we gave to much up. I know that I will not vote yes to ratify an agreement that includes all of those supposedly finished articles. By the way folks, it seems that the majority of the people out there do not believe that we are getting any useful info from D.C.. Maybe some are just glad that they are hearing anything. I can not fathom how this blog can or did damage anything we are trying to do. If the FAA is looking at this and complaining then that means one of two things. The info is correct and they never intended to be honorable in these negotiations (much like the last ones), or the info is not correct which means someone needs to tell them to grow up.

[DBT]

Hey JTB, tell us again why we didn't renegotiate back in 2003 when Marion and her crew first took office and the ATO was in its infancy and at its weakest? Also, could you please tell us why your regime didn't try to fix the title 49 issue during your six year term? One more thing, what did you actually accomplish during your terms?

[mike G]

JTB, thanks for the info. If your release of the potential talks is what breaks down the potential talks that would just go to show that there never really was potential talks. Sounds to me like Pat and da boys are looking for an excuse for there incompetency

[TrainRider]

What did he accomplish? Try looking at that white piece of paper you get every two weeks. Keep it up John. I think you are pushing both sides at once. Not bad for a guy of your stature.

[Bodude]

I'd rather hear something from John than the usual "we're meeting with Marion" crap that seems to fill up my Inbox every week.

[Papa Kilo]

John,
My arn't you getting banged up both here in public and on the "secure BBS" :))

You may want to think of a posting policy like the BBS. That should keep people like Elena Nash from saying somethings that may offend Congress or your other readers.
Do you really talk while posting?

Papa Kilo....
PS...Brother JB is Praying on the BBS right now.

[MB]

I'm on to you to JTB, you and Pat with your "Good Cop, Bad Cop" routine to destroy my forcing you back to the table under my conditions, instead of waiting for those morons on the other side of the hill to force me back with you folks in the driver seat.

You must really underestimate me and my lackey Joey Mincemeat.

See you all back at the table and hopefully it won't take too long (just long enough for the gang of 535 to pass their reauth language, then it is back to B & Associates for some R&R.

Lots of Love

MB

[Thorsen/ZOA]

TrainRider and Bodude are right....and for Forrey to get all bent and imply "this irresponsible leak" could cause a breakdown somehow, is BS. Different people play different roles, and I HATE it when a NATCA rep, at any level, plays the same sort of hush-hush(only I/we are in a position to really know whats going on)games management plays. I can hear it now, "Oh, its all politics and there is alot going on here that I just can't discuss and you are simply naive" FU.... Keep it up John

[tiredofFAAlies]

yeah, the CTI student had it rough.

Don't forget, there are a lot of people that have been serving their country that are looking for the ATC jobs also, as well as the former AFSS employees that had 15, 20, or even more years in that have been told they had priority but in the end have only been blocked from tower and center positions.

CTI should get in line.

[Teak]

Well, it is nice that people actually read what they are griping about.

>I have been sitting on this story for several days. The spy network has been alive with chatter about emergency NATCA telcons and 10th floor FAA meetings, but I didn't want to say anything and possibly jeopardize the progress being made. Then overnight I received two emails from far afield asking me if I knew anything about the tentative agreement (one of them even including some confirming details,) so I feel comfortable that the particulars are leaking out there quite nicely without me. I also waited to get confirmation from a second source regarding the underlying premise, which I was able to accomplish yesterday morning on some details and overnight on others.

If word gets out, maybe you should blame the people WHO ARE THERE, not the people they tell.

If the process is so far along that the teams have been chosen, nobody is going to stop because word got out.

I will say this: If there is no backpay, Mr Forrey should polish off the ole' headset.

IMO

[RevTC]

Even my FacRep posted this blog entry on the NATCA bulletin board today. So even the facreps have to come here to get info!

This was posted as a rumor. When I 1st read it, I didn't think much of it. "Oh, really, that's interesting" I'd prefer to see it to believe it. But after the petulant way in which some of NATCA's "inner circle" have reacted to it, it's no wonder that it's gone from being a rumor to a full blown controversy, one on which the very future of NATCA apparently depends. Puh-leeze.

NATCA took a differnt track after the '06 elections. We're seeing the outcome now of that decision to keep everybody in the dark and just smirk for months on end about things being "in the works". I'm goddam tired of working under these bullshit rules and having my union tell me to suck it up, be patient, hang in there, feel your pain, blah, blah, blah.

Crap. I'm still pissed we never got a proper apology for the hamster remark. Shit, maybe it's because NATCA leadership sees us the same way.

[Big EZ]

I saw the Bang this morning, then I saw Pat's statement this afternoon. The Bull is more credible!

[Retired_Yea]

Let's see now, they screwed up the system, lost or miss placed millions of dollars, alienated thousands of critical employees and I should be glad that they are going to come back to the contract table....IT'S TOO LATE FOR ME. I HOPE THEY EAT S**T AND DIE. They ruined a great job with a great organization, for personal greed and selfish ambition. I want them out of government service, banned from any contract work, driven into exile with no concern for their wellbeing, I want them treated the way they treated us. I WANT REVENGE.

Are you listening contract committee?

[SlantZero]

John,

THANK YOU for keeping our dream alive.

/0

[up nort']

some of you guys crack me up.

If this item being posted on TMB is enough to derail it, then it was never going far from the beginning.

I understand if Pat is upset because he wanted to be the guy to announce this, but he has plenty to do without bothering himself with getting into (or continuing) a pissing contest over this, or anything else on the blog.

[cth]

Get a clue guys!

It OBVIOUSLY aint JTB's bomb to drop... right??? So what ARE his motives??? It's pretty simple. Premature release really CAN screw things up!! and for God's sake it was JTB who played that harp ad-infinitum!! - during contract negotiations/elections not too long ago!! and it wasn't Pat "leaking" shit!!! - It was all the bozos on the BBS!!

Common sense, common decency, common courtesy, ALL say: "Duh - geezzz, maybe I should check with NATCA before I spew what little I know (?)"...
No kidding!!!

INCREDIBLE intellect rendered absolutely useless by an INCREDIBLE ego...

sad...

[Ace Rockola]

"I'm goddam tired of working under these bullshit rules and having my union tell me to suck it up, be patient, hang in there, feel your pain, blah, blah, blah.

Crap. I'm still pissed we never got a proper apology for the hamster remark. Shit, maybe it's because NATCA leadership sees us the same way."

AMEN !

[rerun]

JTB, I have to respectfully disagree with your posting the possibility of negotiations, that ought to be Pat's call.

Everyone else, for better or worse, we have an elected leadership and we need to get behind them. FAA Management has got to love us sniping at each other. Divide and conquer.

[Hmmm]

Let me see, who is dividing here....Maybe N.O. by being silent, from all the postings looks pretty true to me. We can't be divided unless we let them...that's why we may get something soon..we're getting to um finally their lies come home to roost....my she rest in peace, no may she rot in hell....damn this controversy is tiring.

[Jarvis]

How would you feel if someone dropped your ball when you were prez? Nice move John, hopefully everything that you screwed up in your tenure will still get fixed.

[Ron Geyer (SCT)]

"BONG"...,"BONG"...,"BONG"..., San Diego LOVES all of you. JTB et al.... LET'S GET THIS SHIT DONE!

bojang

[Backwards]

I'm sick of these "IWR" also. I say we as controllers keep the S&#$ing down even further, and do nothing at all to help the system. NOTHING !

Do nothing to help the system, don't file flight plans (FSS Issue), and again,.....don't work hard people. The FAA will not back you if your pushing traffic in Towers, or giving directs in RADAR. If your doing these things then YOU are failing US,...THE MEMBERS !! Also, remember what ALPA has be doing, they are in bed with Marion and they want everything Marions pushing to become reality. So don't feel bad about not helping them. Yea, the pilot might be one hell of a guy/gal, but remember that their corporate millionaire bosses are sleeping with the enemy. DO NOTHING !! KEEP THE PRESSURE ON EVERYTHING MANAGEMENT DOES !
If back pay isn't part of the agreement then walk out PAT. Don't sell us out with that nice guy approach. I also want my damn jeans back. There's no reason for me to be wearing this bullshit attire,....none. We all know it was PUNATIVE ! Those rotten bastards !!

[RevTC]

Even after a good night's sleep and 3 martinis I'm still pissed off! Now I'm even thinking that going back to the table with these lying bastards would NOT be a good idea, and IF it's been derailed by this blog, then I say...BRAVO!

So we go back to the table and do what? Live under the IWR still? Still no fix for Title 49? Congress doesn't fix anything cuz the crisis is over, we're "negotiating"? The FAA still refusus to bargain in good faith and only does this as a charade?

The longer we went with no info from our Union, the higher the bar of expectations was raised. Telling us we'll go back to talking to the lying bastards who still have no intention of being fair wouldn't cut it, IMO.

[Hamsterboy]

Who gives a crap. Successful negotiations, or legislation passed to take us back to the green book immediately will do nothing to fix this sinking ship. If negotiations fail, you can blame it on JTB, the NEB, or the HBIC MCB; it doesn't matter. WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGHT EFFFING CONTROLLERS, AND NOTHING, NOTHING, CAN FIX THAT ANYTIME SOON! If a personal blog from a private citizen can derail negotiations, I wouldn't give much credibility to the attempt in the first place. Peace.

[C$M4]

The FAA saying they want to negotiate now in good faith with NATCA is about as credible as George W. Bush giving thoughtful consideration to anyone's input on Iraq. Too good to be true.

[Just a citizen]

Why does it matter if he told the world about the "possibality" of going back to the table? Why was it so "top secret"? What did he screw up during his 6 years as president of NATCA?

[Mole at Center]

What did he screw up in 6 years? PLENTY! He ALLOWED us to get to this point it time. He did NOTHING to stop it. He dared them and they bit. The FAA is having the LAST LAUGH at John Carr's expense and to diffuse some of the heat off of him, he posts his drivvel to make the sitting NATCA Prez and his e-board look back. SHAME ON JOHN CARR.

[Waitin' for da (Toll?) Bridge]

Maybe we should hire a Bridge Builder?

[haunting]

For those that are saying a return to the green book with negotiations starting from the beginning, I agree 1000%. It is the only way to begin the healing. Force managers such as the one here to undo all the unnegotiated things he's done in violation to their own IWR let alone the green book.

Morale at my facility is so low that perhaps that would get us back above ground level. Also, any agreement that negates the multitude of greivances or ULP's is a grave error. We are held to account for not following their BS rules and now we will let them off the hook for not following them too? Seems pretty foolish to me. They lie and can't be trusted.

Force the FAA to negotiate in good faith, don't give them a free pass to continue acting in a manner that, in my opinion, resembles late 1930's and early 1940's Germany.

This is terrible news for all controllers if it is true.

[Papa Kilo]

Did I miss his post or didn't Pat feel the need to confront/accuse John in public?
Maybe it is safer hiding within the monitored BBS and throwing accusations, but not adressing them in the very forum that he is so worried about.
I would think that that would be the first prioity, dispell the nasty rumor in the same forum so the congress people reeading it would know Pat is at the helm.

YGBSM...

[NATCA Citizen]

Lets see what did John to improve things while NATCA President? Well he....ummmm.....I mean he....oh, I know he.....well at least he communicated with the union. Not much got done but at least we were open about it. It made me feel good when John called people names. I still feel good when John calls people names. It makes me feel important.

[Just a citizen]

Mole at Center,

"What did he screw up in 6 years? PLENTY! He ALLOWED us to get to this point it time. He did NOTHING to stop it. He dared them and they bit."

Wow, did you vote for him at any time? The only people we have to blame are ourselves. We allowed ourselves to get here. Pointing fingers gets us no where. The agency was going to bite anyway; we all knew it and we would be naive to think otherwise. It didn't matter if he called them out or not the writing was on the wall. As for title 49, we all (members) had the opportunity and responsibility to make it known that it had some serious flaws in it but we chose to ignore it and role the dice. With a republican in the WH and a republican congress and senate it was dead on arival if it even got to committee. The language needed to be changed in 98 before we signed the contract and if my memory serves me right Mr. Carr wasn't the president of NATCA yet. Mike McNally was president, Randy Schwitz was VP if you can find them talk to them about this mess and thank them...

[NATCA citizen]

It was changed February of 2001 by "W". Hummm... who was the NATCA prez?????

{The language needed to be changed in 98 before we signed the contract and if my memory serves me right Mr. Carr wasn't the president of NATCA yet. Mike McNally was president, Randy Schwitz was VP if you can find them talk to them about this mess and thank them...}

[Pissed Developmental]

So far I haven't seen Pat Forrey accomplish anything... much like when he was in charge of getting my facility the level 12 distinction it deserves. In this case though, he's right. Loose lips sink ships!!!!

[chaz]

JTB,
Can I get my $20 paypal donation back?
Your little ego stroking bomb is going to wind up costing me and my family some serious money and I need to start pinching my pennies.
I am happy that you are safe and secure in your little retirement land. How about shutting up so the rest of us have a chance to join you?

[P Durben]

Aviation Daily just broke about the same story....we are DOOMED...

[P Durben]

BTW....SARCASM

[NATCA citizen]

To pissed developmental. I would say getting back to the table is a pretty good start for someone that has been in office less than a year. Besides if you want to compare, lets look at what John accomplished during his 6 YEARS. Here is the list:
1 - lost respect from congress with stupid remarks
2- lost many valuble employees of NATCA using strong arm tactics. They felt so threatened that they formed their own union. What a shame.
3- lost a good contract

If you are still a developmental from when Pat was FacRep, getting that level 12 should be kind down on the priority list.

To the other moron with the breaking news, I wonder where they got the information from?

Anymore ass-n-nine remarks? Anyone? Beuller..Beuller

[Non_Conforming_AF_Hamster]

Meanwhile, back in reality, FAA just filed its post-hearing brief in the ULP case it filed against PASS for AGREEING TO ITS OFFER and letting membership vote down the contract proposal (98% NO). FAA believes this was such a dastardly and heinous act with such dire consequences that it's asking the judge to retroactively impose its "last best" nontract offer on AF (in spite of the 98% NO vote).
The evil villains in our little morality play have not suddenly grown a conscience.

If true- duh- it's a ploy.

Just keep crossing the days off your Blakey/Bush calendar and quit believing that the battle is almost over. It's going to get much worse before it gets better.

[John Carr]

To NATCA Citizen,

You forgot a few things....like:

1. Got actual Bills introduced to help us from Kelly, Costello, Obama, Hastings, et al.

2. Prevented privatization of level 2s

3. prevented sale of oceanic and polar airspace

4. quadrupled the PAC

5. HELPED our employees form their union. Don't be so selfish, like a union is good for you but bad for them---them having a union is a good thing. (And as for some of our "good lost employees," there are some very serious personnel issues in play there that you have absolutely no clue about, and that I certainly won't be publicizing.)

6. Inherited less than one million in the NATCA bank....left Pat and Paul with over TEN.

7. Reversed wrongful terminations by the dozens.

8. Invented Archie League Awards, Sentinel Of Safety Awards, and NATTYs.

9. Revived and expanded NATCA Disaster Relief Fund for Katrina and other events

10. Fought consolidations

11. Secured a NATCA Majority on the LaTourette Bill, leaving Pat and Paul with a majority in the House in favor of our return to the table.

12., Extended Green Book for three years, putting an additional 300 million dollars in member's pockets

13. Created the NATCA Academy, and tripled the number of activists getting trained. Also secured college accreditation for NATCA classes.

The list goes on but you get the point.

I was the first NATCA President to have a Republican President, along with a Republican Congress in both houses. Unfortunately, much of what I accomplished was PREVENTING bad things from happening.

You are entitled to your opinion. I don't happen to share it.

Best regards,

John

[DBT]

"12., Extended Green Book for three years, putting an additional 300 million dollars in member's pockets"

This is precisely the reason we are in this situation today. Too bad the members are going to have to give that 300 million and much much more back to the agency.