NATCA Recognizes Scholarship Winners: Carson Fischer

Every year, NATCA offers a scholarship program for spouses, children, stepchildren, and legally adopted children of active, retired, and deceased members in good standing for at least two consecutive years. This scholarship is for full-time attendance at accredited colleges and universities within the United States and its territories for an undergraduate degree program.

This year’s prompt asked candidates to examine the factors that can either strengthen or weaken labor unions.

Carson Fischer, child of Curt Fischer (retired Boston TRACON, A90) is among this year’s 20 scholarship winners. Read the essay that Carson submitted below.

NATCA represents 20,000 air traffic controllers, engineers, and other aviation safety-related professionals, with membership from every state, territory, and possession of the United States. In total, 17 separate bargaining focused on air traffic-related positions are represented. NATCA not only bargains for pay and benefits but also uses its influence to advance safety and technology. NATCA is a respected aviation leader leading in a variety of different areas, benefitting their membership by guiding legislation, addressing mental health and fatigue, partnering with the NTSB on investigations, implementing Voluntary Safety Reporting Programs (VSRP), including ATSAP, advancing technology including Enroute Data Comm, Time Based Flow Management (TBDM), Terminal Flight Data Management (TFDM), airspace projects including Metroplex and PBN procedures, new facility development, remodeling, consolidation and much more.

Despite all of NATCA’s achievements, multiple pressures surrounding low staffing, a complex pay structure, lack of stable funding, government shutdowns, and inflation have combined to degrade a historically strong collective spirit. Fractures in the collective have refocused members’ attention from unity against a common enemy towards inward feelings of inequity amongst the membership. Members working a six-day workweek may view those fellow Union members advancing the Union’s reach in programs as working against them and not for them. Against their ability to get leave, against their ability to improve their staffing, and against their ability to advance their career. While Union specialists are needed to accomplish unique tasks to advance programs, their absence from their official position can foster a sense of inequity among those workers left behind. This focus on inequity erodes the collective spirit and dissolves needed unity.

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), looming Government-wide shutdowns, and an ever-increasing federal deficit are stiff headwinds to NATCA’s forward progress. Union leaders must quickly refocus their efforts towards a common enemy, solidifying a resolve to fight for all members. A rallying cry against unjust firings must echo across the land. Now is the time to counter swift decisive action by a runaway executive branch with equal swift decisive action of NATCA’s design. Bold measures must be taken to clearly show that all members and not just a select few are the focus of this Union. These efforts must be taken to re-establish a culture of fairness among members to heal division, rebuild unity, and foster solidarity. The resolve must be genuine and not just hollow buzzwords. A Stand-up for Unity campaign with clearly articulated milestones to achieve should be organized to renew awareness that collaboration requires trust and commitment from both sides. Lastly, members must recognize that if the current political climate creates a void in commitment and trust, its continuation may send the message that NATCA sides with management over the interests of the membership. This collective action and advocacy must be spearheaded by strong, decisive, and communicative leadership, always remembering, “Union is Strength.”