National Association of Air Traffic Specialists

Aviation Safety is Our Business

NAATS HEADQUARTERS EMAIL UPDATE

Number 66
April 28, 2001

NAATS EA Regional Director Ron Maisel and I met with Deputy Administrator Monte Belger this past week. We made a presentation to him on the current status of our pay negotiations and concluded with two recommendations.

1. We asked that the FAA change the mindset of its negotiations team and begin treating us as air traffic controllers in these pay negotiations;

2. That we initiate a joint management/NAATS team to identify the true costs and savings of the NAATS comparability proposal.

No commitments were made at the meeting however we expect to get a response within two weeks. A copy of our presentation is available on the NAATS website.

Ron Maisel and I also met with our congressional lobbyist. Now is the time for an all out effort to convince our congressional representatives to pressure the FAA into treating us fairly. This will require a massive congressional letter-writing campaign. By Tuesday we will have the talking points developed and distributed to you but expect the above theme. The timetable of events then indicates that the next 7-10 day period will be critical to our ultimate success. Again, our goal is to get sufficient pressure on Administrator Garvey requiring her to treat us in the same manner as the other air traffic controllers. Please note -- our lobbyist believes we will achieve the desired end result if we just do our part. We're asking that everyone his or her individual congressional representatives. If you need the names and addresses of your representatives they are available on our website.

I want to emphasize that now is the time for action. If you believe that we should be treated as air traffic controllers then please write congress. Posted on our website is a letter from House Member Connie Morella to Jane Garvey. This letter is an example of the type of congressional pressure we must have in order to be successful. Your help is essential and appreciated.

In closing, we've had numerous requests for recognition for those who have made an extra contribution to the NAATS PAC during our drive. I plan to include a listing of contributors and amounts in the Spring Edition of the NAATS Bulletin, which is due out next month. If you are one of these and do not want your name listed please let us know.


Wally Pike

Walter W. Pike, President

This page was last updated on 1 May 2001