Contract Impasse Update
On June 5, 2006, the eve of the U.S. House of Representative’s vote on Congressman Steve LaTourette’s (R-OH) bill to ensure fair and good faith negotiations, the Federal Aviation Administration informed NATCA that it was imposing its last, best offer upon the Air Traffic Controller, Traffic Management, and NOTAM Bargaining Units.
Since that date NATCA’s leadership, activists, staff, and contract team have been working toward ensuring that FAA’s attempts to circumvent both the intent and the plain language of the FAA Reform legislation are prevented. But, it is quite clear that even though a vast majority of the Congress supports NATCA’s position that further negotiations would result in an agreement, FAA plans to move forward with their plan to illegally subject its employees to non-negotiated, un-ratified work and pay rules. While legislative efforts continue, NATCA has also been working on other avenues to resolve this dispute in the best interest of its members.
NATCA’s labor relations staff, working closely with the contract team, has filed numerous Unfair Labor Practice charges and negotiability appeals with the Federal Labor Relations Authority. The Authority has begun its investigation into many of these charges and while a resolution is not likely in the near term, NATCA’s long-term outlook is strong. The majority of the charges stem from bad faith bargaining over specific articles as well as a failure of the FAA to follow the appropriate impasse procedures, by its insistence on forwarding the dispute to Congress rather than the Federal Service Impasses Panel, the federal agency with jurisdiction over bargaining impasses in the federal sector. NATCA has filed ULP charges rather than cases in the federal courts based upon the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit’s decision in NATCA’s mutli-unit contract impasse case, where the court ruled that the case was not properly before it, and instead should be filed with the FLRA. Regardless of how the Authority rules, in all likelihood, the case will be appealed to the D.C. Circuit and without any procedural or jurisdictional defects, the court will have to rule on the merits of the dispute eventually.
The contract team is combing through the version of the imposed work rules versus those things that were Tentatively Agreed Upon (TAU’d) at the bargaining table as well as the last best offers submitted to NATCA at the table and those submitted to Congress in order to find FAA’s attempts to change things, even after their last, best offer. This will only support NATCA in the grievances and ULPs it files over the imposition.
NATCA leadership, activists, and the staff have been preparing for the eventuality of grievances filed over the imposed terms and conditions. In every case when new work rules replace existing rules, there is some confusion and disagreement, so grievances invariably go up in the first year of a new system. But, given the manner in which this new system is going to be implemented, without agreement, without ratification, and without the normal bi-lateral vetting of the final package, it is even more likely that grievances will increase greatly. It is NATCA’s position that the imposed work rules are not a collective bargaining agreement or contract and that the 2003 collective bargaining agreement (“The Green Book”) remains in full force and effect until the parties reach a successor agreement. NATCA has already provided that guidance to members and initial guidance has been prepared for Facility Representatives. Fac Reps should expect more detailed information shortly.
