By U.S. Rep. John L. Mica
Air traffic controller demands to reopen their FAA contract threatens to kill the FAA reauthorization bill pending in the House of Representatives. I, along with Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar, aviation subcommittee Chairman Jerry Costello, subcommittee Ranking Republican Tom Petri, and Rep. Steve LaTourette, have all worked hard to get the National Air Traffic Controllers Association and the FAA to resolve pending differences and keep Congress out of the contract process. However, the dispute over reopening the contract threatens to send the FAA reauthorization bill into a tailspin and set a horrible precedent.
NATCA's prior contract generously rewarded controllers. Between 1998 and 2006, compensation for controllers increased 80%. Not bad. While controllers' base pay needed adjustment, no federal employees received an average of a 10% pay hike for seven years running.
By the expiration of the 1998 contract, according to FAA data for 2006 and confirmed by the U.S. Transportation Dept.'s Inspector General, the average controller base salary was about $117,000, and total average cash compensation and benefits for controllers exceeded $170,000. Compare this to the salaries of 10-year veteran military air traffic controllers in combat zones whose base pay is just under $36,000.
Air traffic controllers account for over 14,600 of the nearly 45,000 professionals and employees at FAA. Under the terms of the 1998 contract, the pay gap between controllers and other FAA employees jumped from 24% to nearly 40%. All FAA staff and professionals should be treated fairly when it comes to pay increases.
Air traffic controllers are some of the most highly compensated employees within the federal government. But when NATCA negotiated a new contract, under the very same rules that gave them the lucrative 1998 contract, budget constraints and other factors meant that FAA could not agree to as generous terms as the previous deal. Suddenly the terms of negotiation were deemed unfair by NATCA standards, and they have continued to seek a legislative means to reopen the contract and obtain more favorable terms.
Unfortunately, an amendment included in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2007 will reopen the disputed contract.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates the cost of the provision to be $477 million over the life of the bill; however this assumes the issue would be resolved in six months. If the issues cannot be resolved, the costs would be even greater.
FAA's budget cannot sustain these increases. Other FAA employees would face cuts and furloughs. No new controllers could be hired at least until FY 2009. FAA's air traffic control modernization efforts would also suffer budget cuts. Our entire delay-ravaged aviation system would need to endure the dramatic new costs associated with this exceptional treatment for the controllers.
Transportation Secretary Mary Peters has recommended that the President veto any legislation that includes the contract reopener.
This nation's air traffic controllers comprise a talented and dedicated workforce, essential to this nation's transportation system. It takes skill and training to safely move the 50,000 aircraft that traverse the nation's skies every day. Air traffic controllers deserve to be fairly compensated, as do all other FAA employees.
Congress cannot single out any group for special treatment and sky-high compensation packages whenever they don't get their way in contract negotiations. We cannot let this issue bring down an FAA reauthorization at such a crucial moment for our aviation system.