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**Attention: Transportation and Aviation Staff**
The National Association of Air Traffic Control Specialists (NAATS)
would like to provide you with the following information pertaining to
the contracting out of federal aviation jobs. While NAATS is still in
the process of reviewing the award of a contract to manage and operate
flight service stations, we expect to get back to you shortly with our
formal position on the award.
To: Transportation and Aviation Staff
Re: Issues pertaining to the A-76 Award of Flight Service Stations to
Lockheed Martin
Date: February 14, 2005
The National Association of Air Traffic Specialists (NAATS) is a labor
union with national recognition as the exclusive bargaining agent for
the more than 2,000 FAA Air Traffic Control Specialists (ATCS) employed
at FAA Flight Service Stations (AFSS). AFSS provide a host of critical
services to the more than 600,000 general aviation pilots as well as
providing services to the military and commercial pilots. The ATCS who
staff the 61 AFSS and 14 non-automated flight service stations (FSS)
advise pilots on such information as terrain, pre-flight and in-flight
weather information, suggested routes of flight, altitudes, indications
of turbulence or icing, and any other pertinent information.
Additionally ATCS provide pilots with information regarding temporary
flight restrictions (TFR) into prohibited and restricted areas.
The FAA recently utilized a process similar to Circular A-76 to conduct
a public/private competition for the provision of services to the
aviation industry, and the National Airspace System, by FAA Flight
Service Stations (AFSS). Circular A-76, implemented pursuant to Title 31
of the USC, authorizes the government to compete certain inherently
non-governmental jobs to the private sector. Pursuant to the process
employed in A-76, the FAA awarded a 5-year contract, with option for 5
more years, valued at $1.9 billion dollars to Lockheed Martin to operate
the FAA Flight Service Stations in all areas of the United States,
except Alaska.
The process employed in the award of this contract has made it very
difficult for the NAATS membership to evaluate the planned
implementation of the contract award, and to determine what it means for
NAATS employees, and for the Flight Service Stations. In order to
provide information to Congress, this memo outlines the current problems
with process and lack of concrete information, outlines those issues
impacting employee rights and also those issues that we have been able
to identify with the limited information on the Lockheed Martin bid for
the continued operation of Flight Service Stations.
Problems with the
Process
The FAA process is undefined and unique, and allows effected employees
very little opportunity to review and challenge the process.
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The FAA considers
the AFSS outsourcing as an "acquisition" process that they say mirrors
A-76. However they have consistently refused to explain which
regulations they used to develop the screening information request
(SIR) or to award the contract. The FAA is exempt from most of Title 5
procedural procurement regulations. The FAA has used this exemption as
an opportunity to circumvent government wide procurement regulations
as well as government wide Circular A-76 regulations.
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The public portion
of the public/private competition was a The Most Efficient
Organization (MEO) Agency Bid, which was formulated by an Agency
Tender Official (ATO), a FAA executive answerable to the FAA
Administrator. The MEO bid was the work product of the ATO, and
certain NAATS employees, required to comply with non-disclosure
agreements. NAATS employees were not able to review the MEO bid.
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The evaluation of
the bids was conducted by a group of FAA employees, all answerable to
the FAA Administrator.
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The decision to
award the contract to Lockheed was made by an FAA executive,
answerable to the FAA Administrator.
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The decision on
whether to challenge a bid award on behalf of the MEO, is made by the
ATO, an FAA executive answerable to the FAA Administrator.
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Appeals and
challenges to the process used do not go to the GAO but rather to the
FAA Office of Dispute Resolution Authority (ODRA).
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The FAA allows a
total of five (5) days from contract award for interested parties to
submit questions concerning the award. The Lockheed bid supplied
limited information to the interested parties for their consideration.
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The FAA allows
itself 30 days to respond to these questions from interested parties.
The interested parties then have five (5) days to challenge the award
decision.
Employee Rights
The FAA policies below have the affect of forcing employees to work for
Lockheed by eliminating any other options.
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The FAA will only
allow approximately 200 of the 2000 adversely affected employees to
transfer to other air traffic positions despite the fact that the job
training is very similar and in some cases identical. In fact, the FAA
plans to hire 435 new employees "off the street" in lieu of placing
AFSS controllers in these vacancies. Employees with Veterans
Preference will be forced out of the FAA to make room for the new
hires.
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The FAA
arbitrarily limited the competitive area in the award RIF bump and
retreat rights thereby eliminating many adversely affected employees
of RIF bump and retreat rights.
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The FAA maintains
it cannot afford to brief all employees on their career transition
opportunities due to budgetary shortfalls.
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The FAA has
negated employee rights contained in the Priority Placement Plan by
limiting placement of NAATS employees only to the FAA Air Traffic
Organization (ATO).
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The FAA has no
retraining plan, as required in FAA regulations, for adversely
affected employees.
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All employees
unable to retire at time of change over to Lockheed Martin
substantially lose all their rights to a federal retirement.
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The overwhelming
majority of employees affected by this outsourcing are over 40 years
of age. An Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) complaint has been filed
attempting to mitigate the discriminatory effects of this outsourcing.
Lockheed Martin Bid
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Lockheed proposes
to maintain only 20 of the 58 effected Flight Service Station
facilities, three hub facilities (Fort Worth, TX, Leesburg, VA and
Prescott, AZ) and 17 other "legacy" facilities.
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Lockheed will only
allow relocation assistance to those employees who move to the three
hub facilities, and will not allow employees to move to the 17 other
"legacy" facilities, even at their own expense.
We will keep you apprised of new information as it becomes available.
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