Patrick Forrey, President
National Air Traffic Controllers Association

 
Patrick Forrey
President
National Air Traffic Controllers Association

Patrick Forrey began his three-year term in September 2006 as the fifth president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association after a 23-year career as an air traffic controller at the Cleveland Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZOB) and nearly two decades as an elected NATCA Representative.

Forrey served as the union's Great Lakes Regional Vice President from 2000 to 2006 after 10 consecutive years as the Facility Representative at Cleveland Center. He also served on the original Reclassification Team and as NATCA's representative to the Personnel Reform Team. Forrey worked on the Contract Extension team in 2003.

In addition to earning a Bachelor of Science degree in communications, he has completed extensive arbitration advocate training, air safety investigator training and classification and compensation training. Forrey is also a licensed pilot.

Prior to his work with the FAA and NATCA, Forrey worked in the building construction trades and was an active member of the Laborers Union International, Local 310. He then became active in NATCA in 1989 determined to change the FAA's treatment of workers.

Ingrained in Forrey's core value system is the belief that unions fight for an individuals rights to respect and dignity in the work environment and that a union must collectively bargain for the prosperity of the membership and promotion of the profession. He has a traditional labor background but also had the privilege of having hard-working, educated parents who provided a good education and an opportunity to compete in today's world.

As a NATCA leader, Forrey insists that the union continue to foster a relationship between labor and management and to lead the world in innovation and productivity.

Forrey and his wife Maggie have been married for over 26 years. Their 22-year-old son, Christopher, resides in Cleveland.