In This Issue:
NATCA-FAA MOU Adopts Collaborative Process for Consolidated CBA BUEs
NATCA-FAA Positive Collaboration Praised
Suspension of NTI & OJTI until June 15
Operation Traffic Counts Across the United States
Upcoming NATCA Academy Virtual Learning Classes
JCF Member Volunteers to Deliver Important Aid
Paying It Forward to Support Front Line Workers
Archie League, Region X Award Nominations Due Soon
18th Biennial Convention: Register for Event, Hotel
CFS 2020: Registration Opens Aug. 3
Congratulating NATCA Employee Charry Jimenez on 15-Year Anniversary
Union Members Feature: UFCW
Masks for Sale on NATCA Store Website
COVID-19 Resources
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NATCA-FAA MOU Adopts Collaborative Process for Consolidated CBA BUEs
On March 10, NATCA and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) officially adopting a collaborative process for the NATCA bargaining unit employees (BUEs) covered by the June 2, 2013 Consolidated Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
 
The Consolidated CBA, also known as the Purple Book, covers the Engineers and Architects (E&A), Staff Specialists (SSS), Aviation System Specialists (ATSS), and Flight Procedures bargaining units.
 
This language of the MOU, which mirrors Article 114 of the Slate Book, outlines the process by which NATCA and the FAA engage in collaboration. It adopts a definition of collaboration: “both Parties taking responsibility to engage in meaningful dialogue with their counterpart(s). This includes making a genuine effort to ensure that both Parties’ interests have been identified and as many as possible have been addressed before an outcome is determined.”

NATCA and the FAA’s collaborative relationship defines the way the Parties do business. Through collaboration, we are able to achieve positive outcomes in addressing technological and procedural issues and improving the work lives of NATCA’s bargaining unit employees. By defining this process, NATCA and the FAA have made clear their commitment to engaging in collaboration issues on issues that affect NATCA’s BUEs covered by the Consolidated Contract.
 
“The signing of the MOU is significant as it demonstrates that both the FAA and NATCA continue to recognize the benefits of collaboration,” said Region X Vice President Brad Davidson. “We are better when we work together towards solutions on the variety of issues we face in Region X. We look forward to building on our past successes and experiences moving forward.”
 
The MOU also provides for the establishment of workgroups at the local, regional, or national level and outlines the process for doing so, which includes jointly developing a scoping document that, at minimum, outlines the number of participants, designates of co-leads, and describes the extent to which the workgroup makes decisions or recommendations. The MOU also states that BUEs will be in a duty status for all workgroup activities and be afforded duty time for travel.
 
Workgroups established under the MOU make decisions by consensus, which is defined as “the voluntary agreement of all representatives of the workgroup for a particular outcome.”
NATCA-FAA Positive Collaboration Praised
In other collaboration news, Federal News Network's Tom Temin interviewed Bob Tobias, a professor in the Key Executive Leadership Program at American University, about federal employees and their agencies and the current challenges. Here is their exchange on how NATCA and the FAA have successfully collaborated during this COVID-19 national emergency:
 
Tom Temin : There are other models in the federal government. I’ve got a column actually out and then I spoke with FAAs air traffic controllers, their union, and also the tech ops people, they have a separate union, and they said things weren’t perfectly hunky dory, but they did have very fruitful negotiations with FAA management, and were provided cleaning supplies, cleaning services, and also face masks. Because often controllers and the tech people, they work cheek by jowl in crowded facilities. They’ve also made procedures such that because air traffic is light, they have been able to spread out shifts and spread out people within a facility. So there is a better model available, but it just doesn’t seem to be universal across the government.
 
Bob Tobias : That’s correct. And I think that the FAA currently is one of the models for positive labor management relations in the federal sector. And the fact that they were able to meet together and resolve this matter, I think is a terrific model.

Suspension of NTI & OJTI until June 15
The Parties at the National level have re-evaluated the determination to suspend the National Training Initiative (NTI) and On-the-Job-Training (OJTI) and have agreed to extend the suspension an additional thirty (30) days until June 15, 2020. 
Operation Traffic Counts Across the U.S.
While the COVID-19 national emergency has stopped most activities everywhere in our country, NATCA members continue to provide essential service to flights across more than 29 million square miles of airspace. Air traffic controllers are a vital part of the fight against this disease, helping move necessary goods and emergency and medical supplies and equipment and even people, coast to coast, city to city. Otherwise — as all NATCA’s members know — we’re continuing to see dramatically less traffic at all facilities.
NATCA Academy Virtual Learning: Upcoming Online Classes
Even though we cannot meet in person, NATCA members know that continued learning is vital. Our Union is offering NATCA 101 tomorrow, May 15. 
In addition, we are excited to announce that we will be offering a number of online courses derived from the standard curriculum offered by the NATCA Academy. Here’s the upcoming schedule of upcoming classes. Register today!

Register here | Full schedule and class descriptions here

We hope that you will take this opportunity to learn more about your Union your rights, and how you can become more active in the areas that interest you.
JCF VP Gabriel Zeifman's Special Deliveries Aid Front Lines of COVID-19 Battle
Gabriel Zeifman, who serves as the local NATCA vice president at Joshua Control Facility (JCF), is also currently serving more than four dozen Southern California communities with critically important volunteer work. He has been working for the American Red Cross as both a blood and platelet donor and also as a delivery driver of blood and blood components. This is a 24/7 operation during this COVID-19 national emergency. Zeifman has already been to 40 hospitals throughout Southern California.

Zeifman, who is also a pilot, won the 2019 Alaskan Region Archie League Medal of Safety Award while working at Juneau ATCT (JNU). Below, he shares the story of his current efforts:
I’ve been a regular blood donor since I started college, but I’ve only recently gotten into donating platelets. During a platelet donation, your blood is collected and separated by an apheresis machine, with the undesired components returned to the donor either via the same needle or via a dedicated return needle (most platelet donations use two needles). 

The process takes about two hours, and you can do it every seven days (up to 24 times per year). Every 28 days, an additional unit of plasma may be taken. Since the start of the safer-at-home orders, I’ve been donating platelets/blood weekly. I noticed an American Red Cross call for volunteers, and the first job I saw listed was “Blood Services-Transportation Specialist.” I signed up and completed the training, which included some basic screening, a defensive driving class, and a road test/OJT. 

The job is primarily delivering blood and blood components to hospitals, both on a routine basis (you can sign up for scheduled routes), but also on an emergency and non-routine basis. We get emergency orders for blood products needed in a timely fashion for a specific patient. We also get ASAP orders, which are less urgent. Examples of these are replenishing the stock of blood at a hospital that used its stored components, or products for a scheduled transfusion happening the next morning. We also pick up samples to bring back to the lab for cross-matching, transfer blood between hospitals, and pick up from blood drives and donor centers to bring back to the hub for testing and processing. I’ve already been to 50 hospitals throughout Southern California (map below, which also shows Red Cross locations with red dots), mostly in the Los Angeles area but as far away as San Diego and my home community of Lancaster. 
I am so proud to be a NATCA member and serve in a leadership position at Joshua Control Facility (JCF). It’s similarly rewarding to be able to get out on the front lines and do a small part to support our healthcare workers and the patients they care for, and to participate somewhat in healing our country. The blood supply is down with large numbers of blood drives cancelled and people cancelling their appointments. Thankfully, the overall blood demand is also down with many elective procedures cancelled and trauma cases being less frequent. But there is still a tremendous need for blood and blood components and donors are very much needed. Cancer patients still need platelets, trauma is still occurring, and COVID-19 patients often use an extraordinary amount of blood products due to the nature of the disease to destroy blood. 

I highly encourage everyone who is eligible to get out and donate blood or try an apheresis procedure if you have a suitable blood type and are willing (double-red cell donation, platelet, plasma). I also encourage everyone to consider using some of your excused absence time to volunteer if you can; the help is very much needed and it’s very rewarding. Most hospitals need a variety of volunteers and are doing temperature checks and basic wellness checks for safety. The Red Cross also does this at donor centers. 

The Red Cross also needs help with distributing meals in communities. Learn more here . For information on donating blood, click here .
Paying it Forward: NATCA Members Continue Efforts to Support Other Essential Workers
Boston Center (ZBW), Boston TRACON (A90): Members have spent the past month supporting local health care professionals and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 national emergency. It is part of their “Pay it Back/Pay it Forward” campaign that is allowing them to return the support and generosity shown to them last year during the government shutdown.

The campaign has reached three dozen different locations to deliver food and encouragement, with the final delivery taking place on Tuesday at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington, Mass. Just as meaningful to the members, they have purchased the meals from a dozen local restaurants to help those businesses. Members funded the effort by raising over $12,000.

Last week, FacRep Fred Romani of Boston Center (ZBW, pictured above), FacRep Curt Fischer from Boston TRACON (A90), and ZBW members Shannon Lyman and Rachel Schelhorn made a delivery to Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, N.H., that was covered by local news station WMUR. 

“Air traffic controllers went 35 days without knowing when we were going to be paid. Having to work, a lot of these local establishments sent food to the center, to the TRACON. So we wanted to pay it back to them,” Romani said in the story. View story
Chicago O’Hare ATCT (ORD) : Member Anton Sasmitamanggala led an effort at the facility that raised $4,200 for local first responders and health care workers. They bought pizza, salad, cookies, and brownies from Moretti’s and delivered it to ICU workers at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital and St. Bernard Hospital, as well as to the Chicago Fire Department, Chicago Police Department, and the Illinois State Police. Special thanks to members Vanessa Gurrola and Suzy Hamilton for helping collect donations and coordinating to get the food delivered.
Honolulu Control Facility (HCF) : Members provided 14 lunches to the firefighters at stations 39 and 18 in Kailua, on the east coast of Oahu. “Thank you for battling on the front lines to keep Hawai’i safe,” wrote member Mollie Barnes (pictured at right with her daughter, Morgan) on a Facebook post tagging the fire station. “Thanks to my NATCA brothers and sisters who were willing to pay it forward in support of those businesses that supported federal workers during the shutdown. Delicious food was provided by The Food Company in Kailua.” Kellie Watson is the other member pictured (far left).
New York Center (ZNY) : Members, with money raised through a GoFundMe page set up by the ZNY E-board, donated 200 meals to Nassau University Medical Center and 200 more to Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center and St. Joseph Hospital to help support hard-working medical professionals on the front lines. That brings the total throughout their effort to 600 meals, with 400 more that were scheduled this week. “Thank you NATCA ZNY members for your generosity, and we will continue to do this for weeks to come,” said member Bill Ordon (pictured). “We’re all in this together! We’ve teamed up with a local company, Healthy Meals Direct, and are able to get high quality, nutritious meals for our local hospitals. We plan on continuing this for quite some time!”
Houston Center (ZHU) : The facility teamed with the Salata restaurants of the Houston area and fed 50 front-line medical staff working at the ICU and COVID-19 units at Tomball Regional Hospital. The meals were delivered in memory of career-long member Steve Muenster (pictured above left), who passed away last year. “Steve was a true professional in every sense of the word as an air traffic controller at Houston Center, and he has left a lifelong impression on so many of THE example of a true professional in our career field,” ZHU FacRep Chris Parris said. “Thank you to NATCA member Chris Reece (pictured above right with a Salata employee) for spearheading this delivery today! More to come!” Reece credited Salata fran chise owners Iris Campos and Joe Piro who, he says, "went above and beyond to help us with this meal delivery."
Indianapolis ATCT (IND), and Indianapolis Center (ZID) : IND member Dan O’Leary organized a collection from IND and ZID totaling nearly $1,200. He then bought snacks for three surrounding Indianapolis medical facilities, delivering the food the past few days.
Archie League, Region X Safety Awards: Nomination Deadline Approaching
NATCA members: We’re looking for the best saves that have occurred at your facilities from May 1, 2019 through May 31, 2020. A member may nominate another member for an Archie League Medal of Safety Award. Deadline to nominate: June 15. Nomination form

The Region X Commitment to Safety Award is given annually to a Region X member who has shown a profound dedication to ensuring the safety of the National Airspace System (NAS). The award is peer-nominated, and any Region X member in good standing can be nominated for work done between May 1, 2019 and May 31, 2020 in their role as an aviation safety professional. Deadline to submit nominations is June 15. Nomination form
NATCA Biennial Convention: Registration is Open
The 18th Biennial Convention is rescheduled to take place at the Marriott Marquis in Houston, Saturday, Aug. 29, through Monday, Aug. 31. Registration is a two-step process.

STEP 1: Register for the convention here . 

STEP 2: Register for your hotel room here .
CFS 2020: Registration Opens Aug. 3
In response to the COVID-19 national emergency, and to allow for the aviation industry to stabilize, NATCA has decided to postpone its annual Communicating For Safety (CFS) conference by two months. The new dates are Nov. 16-18. The event will remain at Bally’s in Las Vegas.

CFS is the aviation industry’s leading conference focusing on safety, technology, and building relationships. It’s the only conference of its kind to focus specifically on the air traffic needs of all members of the aviation community who are affected by the National Airspace System (NAS). CFS brings together not only NATCA members but Federal Aviation Administration officials, pilots, industry leaders, and international aviation community guests.

Registration for CFS 2020 will open on Aug. 3.
NATCA Congratulates Office Manager Charry Jimenez on Her 15-Year Anniversary
NATCA salutes our amazing National Office staff members who come to work each day committed to providing our members with the very best service and representation in organized labor.

May marks an important anniversary for one of these staff members, Charry Jimenez. We thank her for her incredible 15 years of service to our Union! Below is our interview with Charry:

What is your job title and what are some of the things you do for NATCA in that role? 
 
I am the Office Manager and Supervisor of the Membership Department. I manage the operations of the NATCA Store and oversee the processing of membership applications, dues, and database entry. I also act as a liaison between NATCA members, our tenants, and contractors for the Krasner Building (NATCA’s National Office headquarters in Washington, D.C.).
 
Where are you from or what places have you lived?
 
I was born in the Philippines but grew up in Hong Kong. I moved to the USA in 2000 and proudly became a U.S. citizen in 2015.
 
Where did you go to school or what other education do you have?
 
I graduated from the University of Santo Tomas, Philippines, with a Bachelor of Secondary Education and majored in Physical Education. 
 
How did you come to work at NATCA?
 
I first worked for Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company (at the Hong Kong and Washington, D.C., properties) and left after seven years with the company. I did temp assignments for a short period in early 2005 and was looking for permanent jobs in between. I found the article former NATCA Membership Director, Lewis Zietz, posted in the newspaper. I applied for the position as Membership Coordinator and the rest is history.
 
Do you have family members who are involved in unions? 
 
No.
 
What's the most rewarding part of being a member of NATCA’s staff? What's the most challenging?
 
Rewarding: I mostly communicate with NATCA members by email or phone, so it’s rewarding to finally meet them in person at NATCA events like NATCA in Washington or when they come for meetings or trainings at the National Office.
Challenging: Juggling between mom duties and work is challenging but manageable.
 
Do you have any hobbies or any other activities you enjoy outside of your work for NATCA?
 
I love to sing and do Zumba. During down time, I like to binge watch comedy sitcoms and Korean TV drama. On nice days, my daughters (Olivia, 10, and Isabelle, 7, pictured above with Charry's husband, Patrick) and I go to the playground, the zoo, or go shopping.
 
Has there been a favorite moment for you while at NATCA?
 
When I was pregnant with my first born in 2009. My relatives were in the Philippines and Hong Kong, and I was homesick. My friends surprised me with a baby shower in the McNally Room at the National Office. Everyone from NATCA and my husband were there. I was blown away. My now 10-year-old daughter and her 7-year-old sister are NATCA babies.
Union Members Feature: UFCW
NATCA continues to highlight our union sisters and brothers who also are essential workers during the COVID-19 national emergency. Today, we highlight and thank our union siblings of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), representing more than 1.3 million hard-working men and women all across the country. During this unprecedented nationwide demand for groceries and health care, workers in these industries are facing incredibly difficult, stressful, and exhausting days while risking exposure to COVID-19.
 
The UFCW represents not only grocery and other food workers who are still hard at work making sure our communities have access to groceries and other essential supplies during this crisis, but also nurses and other health care professionals who are on the front lines caring for patients..
 
“America’s meatpacking workers have been on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic from the beginning, working tirelessly to make sure families have the food they need during this crisis,” said UFCW President Marc Perrone in a letter to the Department of Agriculture calling on Secretary Sonny Perdue to take a series of immediate actions to protect meatpacking workers and our nation’s food supply. “We are urgently calling on Secretary Perdue to adopt a series of safety actions and enact immediate guidelines to protect these essential workers which, in turn, will protect our communities and this nation’s food supply.”
 


Aviation Labor News

CNN - Airlines Say Massive Job Cuts Are Inevitable After Bailout Dries Up : “US airline workers have been largely spared from the havoc that’s pushed the country’s unemployment to record highs since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. But those same workers — roughly 750,000 pilots, flight attendants, baggage handlers, mechanics and others — will soon be among the most at-risk for losing their jobs. The federal bailout for the airline industry barred layoffs, involuntary furloughs or pay cuts for employees. But executives have been blunt that job cuts are coming once that prohibition lifts on October 1, with estimates that up to a third of the sector’s jobs could disappear.” Read more

International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) Aviation Blog - Successful union campaign stops furloughs at United Airlines – for now: "The ITF-affiliated International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers’ (IAM) campaign has managed to stop United Airlines’ scheme intending to force 15,000 full-time IAM members into part-time positions. The carrier, however, has left the door open to resuming its forced reduction to the part-time program. The IAM’s campaign against United Airlines’ unilateral decision captivated the attention of the entire labour movement, since United’s action threatened to spur other companies to mistreat workers while accepting taxpayer dollars from coronavirus relief legislation." Read more

Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO - The Cares Act is Designed to Protect Workers; We Must Ensure it Stays That Way : “United has reconsidered its position, and now says full-time workers can elect to become part time. Those who do so will not lose their full-time status, and any full-time employees who do not agree to a reduction in hours will remain full time. While this is a win for working families everywhere, front-line aviation workers are not out of the woods yet. United executives say they plan to review the situation later this summer and may reconsider once again forcing part-time status on full-time workers. This is especially troubling when one considers the precedent it could set. If United’s plan is allowed to stand, it opens the door for other carriers to also ignore the letter of the law and impose unilateral changes that hurt working families. The fact of the matter is, there shouldn’t be any review of this program, and it shouldn’t have taken the threat of legal action or a coordinated effort by thousands of union members to get United Airlines to obey the law. Any decision by any air carrier that results in reduced wages and benefits of frontline workers, and is made without workers’ input or over workers’ objections, violates the CARES Act and flies in the face of Congressional intent.” Read more

Excerpt from Politico story: “Airline moves to cut hours have also frustrated others in the industry who had thrown their support behind the bill because of its worker protections, which they say are now being undermined. ‘I don’t buy food with my hourly rate,’ said Dennis Tajer, communications director for the Allied Pilots Association, which represents American Airlines pilots. ‘It’s a math problem, hourly rate times hours worked. You just undermined the entire equation. Actions like this can only serve to vilify the airline industry and serve as a disconnect to the human cause that this is all about. And I’m certain that’s not their intent, but we’re going to be here to remind them, hey, this doesn’t look good.’”

The Washington Post - Federal rescue money is helping keep many airport workers on the job — but not all of them : Not long ago, officials approved a plan that would boost the hourly wages of more than 2,000 food and retail workers at Dulles and Washington National Airports to $15 an hour by 2023. It was a small victory, but it meant that many could work two jobs instead of three. The celebration was short-lived. In March, hundreds of employees were laid off — victims of the worst economic downturn in the industry’s history. From the story: “Unions, however, say companies such as HMSHost, which reported more than $3.5 billion in annual sales before the crisis, can do more. And so can airports, which received $10 billion in money from the Cares Act. ‘Airport concessionaires are seeking and receiving relief,’ said Marlene Patrick-Cooper, the president of Unite Here Local 23, which represents food and retail workers at Dulles and National. ‘Airports should make concessionaires commit to bring laid-off airport employees back to work as the airports recover and ensure that front-line workers have access to quality health care.’” Read more
NATCA Masks for Sale on Store Website
NATCA Masks For Sale on Store Website

NATCA has procured higher-quality, thicker cloth face masks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends wearing cloth face coverings in settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain. The CDC also advises the use of simple cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the virus and help people who may have the virus and do not know it from transmitting it to others.

In addition to these masks being shipped out to all facilities for all NATCA members, they are also available for purchase in the NATCA online store. NATCA staff are working remotely due to COVID-19. Please expect slight delays as we work with our suppliers to assist in the shipment of this item. The $10 price of this mask includes the cost of the mask, taxes, and shipping. The item will be shipped via USPS First Class Mail. Order here.
NATCA Member COVID-19 Resources
During the COVID-19 pandemic, please know the  CISM team  is here to help you. CISM is a peer-to-peer service designed to help you post-accident or during a personal crisis. You can call us 24/7, 265 at 202-505-CISM (2476). If you reach our voicemail please leave your contact info, and someone will call you back. Keep in mind, we are aviation safety professionals and may be actively working at the time of your call. Messages are kept strictly confidential. You also can reach us via email at  CISM@natca.net   or check out our website at www.natca.org/CISM . 
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