Four thousand FAA employees to be laid off tomorrow.

James48843 · Aug 3, 2011

Warrenlm said:
...With regard to the expenses I thought everyone used the govt cards and depended on claim reimbursement, which comes later. Are they really using their own Visas or is that part of the "story" of awfulness?

Yes, you are legally required to use the government contractor issued charge card. However, at the moment, there is no legal authority to use the card, therefore, if they use the contracor issued charge card, they would be in violation of the law, so they can't. Besides- the contractor-issued charge card is NOT the property of the government, it is a card that is issued to an employee personally, and is the debt obligation of the employee, not the employer. IN short, if you default (where have we heard that word default before??) the credit card company comes after the INDIVIDUAL, not the government.

And individual employees do not have the 14th Amendment saying the full faith and credit of the individual shall not be questioned.

14th Amendment, section 4: The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.

James48843 · Aug 3, 2011

Message tonight:

This is PASS National President Tom Brantley with a broadcast message for August 3, 2011.

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Since our last message on congressional feuding over another extension of FAA funding, several significant things have happened. The most crucial change is that around 4,000 FAA employees have been furloughed. Approximately 350 of those employees are represented by PASS.

Incredibly, Congress decided to begin their summer vacations early, with the House recessing on Monday and the Senate following suit on Tuesday. While Congress was scheduled to work through the rest of this week, congressional “leadership” apparently feels that working to resolve their differences and end the partial FAA shutdown was not worth their time when weighed against an early exit to vacation. I suspect they would feel differently if they or their own staff employees were put out of work for at least six weeks.

Worst of all, Republican leadership continues to portray the quarrel between the House and Senate as a dispute over funding for the Essential Air Service (EAS) program. Despite the public posturing, these claims couldn’t be further from the truth. This fight is also not about funding the FAA in general or balancing the federal budget. This fight is about House Republicans attacking unions through the legislative process when they have lost the ability to do so through the executive branch. Since Republicans are no longer in the White House, they cannot force federal agencies such as the National Mediation Board (NMB) to establish rules to make it harder for unions to organize. As such, they are attempting to enact changes within the executive branch through legislation dealing with the FAA. This unprecedented backdoor assault is a shameful way for Republicans to subvert the legislative process and use it as a weapon to force an extreme ideology on the American people. Even more disturbing, House Republicans have chosen to promote their agenda on the backs of about 4,000 FAA employees and an estimated 70,000 construction workers around the country who were forced to stop working on airport projects when funding was no longer available.

Here are the facts regarding the House’s chosen method of getting their way:

Congress has passed 20 consecutive temporary funding measures since the FAA’s authorization expired in 2007. It was not until the current 21st extension that House Republicans decided to go after the EAS program.

The changes to the EAS program proposed by House Republicans were designed to target three particular areas: Nevada, home of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid; West Virginia, home of Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller; and Montana, home of Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus.

Speaking at an American Association of Airport Executives conference in July, Rep. John Mica, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, assured airport executives that the House provision is a bargaining chip to gain concession on changes to NMB rules covering union organizing elections. Mica was quoted as saying, “It’s just a tool to try to motivate some action to get this resolved,” and that if the NMB provision were resolved, “the rest can fall into place within 20 minutes.”

The FAA is losing about $30 million a day it normally takes in on airline ticket sales. With the FAA remaining unfunded through September 7, which is when Congress is due to return from vacation, the FAA will lose more than $1 billion in revenue.

These actions by a Congress that is supposed to work for the American people, rather than the CEOs of anti-union airlines, cannot go unchallenged. Over the coming days, every PASS member must weigh in and be heard on behalf of our Brothers and Sisters who have become the target of the House Republicans’ assault on unions. We must make it clear to Congress that any party’s political dogma must not become more important than the continued safety and efficiency of our nation’s air traffic control system. We must also make clear that using hard-working Americans as leverage in bargaining over legislation is cowardly and disgraceful and has no place in conducting the business of the American people.

We will need every PASS member to take the time to contact their representative and senators and tell them that Congress must PASS an FAA extension bill now! We must tell them that failure to do so will cause increasing harm to furloughed employees with every day that passes, and that modernization of the National Airspace System will remain on hold until they correct this offensive abuse of authority. Members of Congress must uphold their duty to put the welfare of America before their party’s political agenda.

We will very shortly send out specific information, continuing until FAA funding is restored, giving specific guidance on contacting your members of congress. We will ask our chapter leaders and representatives around the country to help spread the word and mobilize every member to take an active role in fighting for our Brothers and Sisters whose ability to support their families is being held hostage to partisan politics. When you receive this information, please follow our recommendation and make your voice heard!

PASS will continue to use every path available to ensure that this travesty sees the light of day and that Congress is held accountable for this disgraceful attempt to use the welfare of hard-working FAA employees to hide a partisan political agenda. We will look for every opportunity to share our message with the public and the news media around the country until Congress acts responsibly and passes an FAA extension. We ask that every member support our efforts as they unfold.

PASS will also continue to pass along any information that is made available to help furloughed employees during this crisis. It is vital that every resource that can help furloughed employees, no matter how small it may seem, be shared with them.

While PASS does not have a fund established for members who are not receiving a paycheck due to congressional irresponsibility, we will quickly find out what legal restrictions, if any, there are to PASS’s ability to help impacted members. I ask furloughed members who truly need help to send a statement to me at the PASS national office describing the impact the furlough is having on you or family, and I will work with the PASS Executive Board to offer whatever assistance that PASS can.

PASS will continue the fight until every member has returned to work and Congress does everything possible to restore what has been lost by furloughed employees.

James48843 · Aug 3, 2011

FAA EMPLOYEE UNIONS ASK CONGRESS TO PASS FAA EXTENSION NOW

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Calls on Congress to Return to Capitol Hill to Act Now

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, the unions representing the approximately 4,000 furloughed FAA employees expressed disappointment that Congress was unable to pass an extension of FAA funding prior to recessing. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), and Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS) released the following statement regarding the continued furloughs and partial shutdown of the FAA:

"We are extremely frustrated and discouraged that members of Congress have left Washington for recess without passing an FAA extension. If the FAA continues on partial shutdown for the month of August, it will lose $1.5 billion in revenue. Every day this impasse continues is another day that major airport projects are delayed and work is stopped on important Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) initiatives. Included among projects and programs impacted are long-term runway safety initiatives, NextGen air traffic control research and testing, modernization of control towers and other aviation infrastructure, and weather research.

"Of utmost concern, this shutdown is putting thousands of critical employees out of work. Nearly 4,000 FAA employees have been forced to go without a paycheck for almost two weeks. These employees provide essential services and perform a variety of functions critical to the safe and efficient operation of the aviation system. In addition, due to the FAA having to issue dozens of stop-work orders, 70,000 construction workers nationwide are without employment. These employees and their families have been suffering for weeks now. This suffering cannot continue another day, let alone another month.

"AFGE, AFSCME, NATCA and PASS ask members of Congress to pass an FAA extension immediately. The air traffic control system cannot wait and neither can the families of the thousands of impacted employees across the nation. To protect this country's aviation system and secure jobs throughout the country, Congress must act now."

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American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) and Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS), represent over 30,000 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employees.

http://www.newsmgr.com/nm2/publish/...-ASK-CONGRESS-TO-PASS-FAA-EXTENSION-NOW.shtml

burrocrat · Aug 3, 2011

James48843 said:
We will very shortly send out specific information, continuing until FAA funding is restored, giving specific guidance on contacting your members of congress. We will ask our chapter leaders and representatives around the country to help spread the word and mobilize every member to take an active role in fighting for our Brothers and Sisters whose ability to support their families is being held hostage to partisan politics. When you receive this information, please follow our recommendation and make your voice heard!

So was I supposed to be getting some kind of secret message or something here soon? I've been listening but I only hear static?

And where was I supposed to stash the decoder ring again?

Cornfused.

James48843 · Aug 4, 2011

Re: Four thousand FAA employees laid off

Senator Boxer joined Senate and House Democrats to support a clean reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration, which would end a Republican FAA shutdown that is hurting thousands of American workers.

She said among other things: "They made up this crisis because they want to get their way on a number of issues."

"It is time that the put the interest of jobs ahead of their own petty agenda....This is government by hostage taking....This is government by threat."

James48843 · Aug 4, 2011

Re: Four thousand FAA employees laid off

Update

Dear Colleagues,

As you by now know, the United States Congress has adjourned for its August recess without meeting its responsibilities to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration and put 4,000 of our coworkers back on the job.

This astonishing failure is outrageous and disappointing. It causes significant hardship for many members of our DOT and FAA family. And although the situation has reached a stalemate, we want to assure you: We will not give up our fight for a solution until our team is back at full strength. Our supporters in Congress are working diligently to find a fix, too.

Many of you have asked how you can help our colleagues that are out of work. The Federal Employee Education and Assistance (FEEA) Fund stands ready to assist FAA employees who are furloughed. You can donate money to this recognized CFC charity and our colleagues in need can apply for emergency no-interest loans of up to $1,000. Be sure to designate your gift under the "FAA Relief Fund." For more information about the charity, or to apply for a loan, visit the FEEA website: http://www.feea.org/gethelp.

Many of you also have asked if the FAA will be forced to do a reduction-in-force, or RIF, should the furlough go longer than 30 days. You can be assured that this will not happen. Unlike other furlough situations under OPM regulations, this furlough results from Congress’ failure to extend the FAA’s authorization; it was not initiated by the Agency to save money. Therefore, this furlough will not be converted to a RIF.

Please know that President Obama joins us in thanking you for your exceptional dedication and your ongoing patience. Each of you is essential. Each of you plays an essential role in our department and for the American people.

We will continue to provide regular updates as circumstances evolve.

Secretary Ray LaHood

Administrator Randy Babbitt

nasa1974 · Aug 4, 2011

From what I have heard one of the other issues is that the republicans want to stop partially funding the airlines for flying into smaller cities that would not normally have commercial air traffic.

jkenjohnson · Aug 4, 2011