Current Rules

[MJ]

Updated 4/23/19
Visit the ERR/NCEPT FAQ section for additional information.
Download the NATCA - ERR MOU/SOP

Facility Status
Category 1

1. CPC AOB > 90% CPC AOB national average, and
2. Projected > 90% Projected national average

Release dates shall be within three (3) months of selection, or at the election of the employee no later than six (6) months.

Category 2

1. CPC AOB > CPC AOB national average, and
2. Projected > 85.0% Projected

Release dates shall be within twelve (12) months of selection. Release dates have to be agreed upon by the releasing and receiving ATM.

Note: "Exempt" status is no longer applicable as of 3rd qtr 2017. Projected national average is frozen at 85% as of 4th qtr 2017. Cat 1 (1 year) removed as of 4th qtr 2017.

AOB National Average History
01/16: 86.3% 01/17: 82.6% 01/18: 81.8% 12/18: 80.7%
04/16: 85.3% 04/17: 82.0% 04/18: 81.8% 04/19: 80.2%
07/16: 82.8% 07/17: 82.2% 07/18: 81.3% 07/19:
10/16: 82.4% 10/17: 82.0% 10/18: 80.8% 10/19:

Eligibility
Facility must be cat1 or cat2. Selections can be made from a facility to the point when either AOB or Projected drops one below the national average.

For example:
National avg = 85%
Facility = 90%
Individual CPC = 3%
Two selections can be made, as the second drops the facility to 84%.

Selection
Facility priority is the sole factor to determine which facility you will be selected at. Available slots will be filled in order of priority, until there are no eligible ERRs or no available slots.
#1 exhausts all slots/ERRs before #2 is considered
#2 exhausts all slots/ERRs before #3 is considered, etc...

If an individual files multiple ERRs, they will be placed in the highest priority facility with available slots. They will not be considered for any other slot once placed.

First Pass - Selections are made in the order or their priority for all facilities below the actual projected national average. On the first pass, facilities can only be staffed up to the true projected national average. As of 4th qtr 2017, facilities can select and receive if they fit the criteria for Cat 1 or Cat 2, but are below the true projected national average.

Second Pass - After all eligible slots have been filled on the first pass, additional selections may be made to level 4-9 facilities up to 100% projected in the order of their facility priority from remaining eligible facilities. As of Q2 '19, this is now at the discretion of the NCEPT panel.

Manager Ranking: This is only used as a potential tie breaker where there are more individuals than slots available at a single facility. Manager ranking has no impact on which facility you will be selected at. Manager's have the ability to rank an applicant as "insufficient experience" in order to request the individual is not selected.

ERR File date
Previously used for selection tie breaker between two people going from and to the same facility where only one could be selected. This function is replaced by manager ranking. The file date is used as a tie breaker in the event multiple people are selected to leave the same facility, the releases will be given in order of file date.

Slot Availability
For levels 4-9: Allocated slots to reach 100% projected staffing.
For levels 10-12: Allocated slots to reach the actual national average projected staffing %.

Note: Selections are allowed until the facility goes over the target. IE: 99% would still allow 1 selection assuming it moves the projected number over 100%.

As of Q2 '19, NCEPT panel may pass over eligible ERR's if the gaining facility has a "high" trainee to CPC ratio. This decision criteria has not be made public (that I'm aware of).

Swaps
The ERR MOU and the SOP have been updated with the following:

green: Cat I or Cat II
red: None

If either of the swapping facilities are red for AOB or Projected, the swap is denied.

Timeline
There is a deadline for err submissions/withdrawals, about 3 weeks before a selection panel. Anything after this deadline will not be processed for the current panel. (The dates are posted in the first post of a panels thread.)

Roughly 2 weeks before the panel, the final priority placement lists will be generated for the panel. You will not know the definitive priority list prior to submitting the ERR paperwork.

The PPT run in the month prior to the panel is the data that is used for the panel. At this point, the information is essentially frozen until the selections begins. That means certifications, retirements, etc. which happen from the time of the final PPT run to the selection panel will have no impact on the current panel.

Note: CPC-ITs are checked to verify their status before the panel, and will be considered as CPC's if they are certified after the PPT run, but prior to the panel.

Related Threads
NCEPT Minutes
Projected inbounds

 

[ATC_av8er]

Thanks MJ. This single post contains more information than either NATCA or the FAA has released.

 

[RL]

Thanks MJ. This single post contains more information than either NATCA or the FAA has released.

I second this!

 

[LEAD004]

I third!

 

[rugbydog11]

MJ... You are just the bees knees.

 

[breakaway2000]

Looks great MJ. To go into a little more detail on the manager's ranking list. Available slots are all relative to where the ERR's are from as well. For instance, lets say Facility XYZ can pick up 11 people and they have 5 eligible ERR's, but out of the 5, 2 are from Facility ABC, that can only release 1 person. Technically, they have 5 ERR's for 4 eligible slots because they can only select 1 from Facility ABC. The manager will be given a list to rank. Long story short, if you're at a facility that has multiple people trying to go to the same facility, network...it makes a difference.

Also, Facility Strategy (aka don't be a dick if you get picked up, unless you hate everyone you work with then this is how you stick it to everyone)
Once a controller is selected, they will remain on your CPC % until the day they leave, which is huge if you're right around the national average. Once they accept the TOL and have a negotiated start date at their new facility, they will be counted as an outbound on the PPT which only effects your projected %. At each individual facility you know your rough timelines aka when a retirement will hit, when a trainee could certify, etc. The moment a prior experience new hire, nest, or academy graduate gets a TOL for your facility, they are immediately counted on your projected %.

EX. Someone at your facility gets selected this panel. The next two PPT runs to determine the next two panels would be somewhere around 8/24, and 11/24. If you choose a date after 8/24 or if you're really kind after 11/24, it will give other people at your facility the opportunity to be selected. You remaining on the CPC% until the next panel could mean the difference between being Cat 1 over Cat 2 or being Cat 2 over frozen.

 

[breakaway2000]

I also got a kick out of the FAA screwing up arguably the easiest color scheme of all time...Green (Good above 5%), Yellow (Caution within 5%), Red (Bad below 5%).

 

[Dolan]

Thanks for the post MJ.

Regarding slot allocation at 4-9 facilities, allocating to 100% just means that these facilities will be on academy grads, NESTers, and prior experience hire's lists of facility choices until those facilities are 100% staffed? Are academy classes still being offered fairly big lists?

This really sucks for certain towers. Nobody is going to choose them because they won't ever get out.

 

[RL]

Looks great MJ. To go into a little more detail on the manager's ranking list. Available slots are all relative to where the ERR's are from as well. For instance, lets say Facility XYZ can pick up 11 people and they have 5 eligible ERR's, but out of the 5, 2 are from Facility ABC, that can only release 1 person. Technically, they have 5 ERR's for 4 eligible slots because they can only select 1 from Facility ABC. The manager will be given a list to rank. Long story short, if you're at a facility that has multiple people trying to go to the same facility, network...it makes a difference.

Also, Facility Strategy (aka don't be a dick if you get picked up, unless you hate everyone you work with then this is how you stick it to everyone)
Once a controller is selected, they will remain on your CPC % until the day they leave, which is huge if you're right around the national average. Once they accept the TOL and have a negotiated start date at their new facility, they will be counted as an outbound on the PPT which only effects your projected %. At each individual facility you know your rough timelines aka when a retirement will hit, when a trainee could certify, etc. The moment a prior experience new hire, nest, or academy graduate gets a TOL for your facility, they are immediately counted on your projected %.

EX. Someone at your facility gets selected this panel. The next two PPT runs to determine the next two panels would be somewhere around 8/24, and 11/24. If you choose a date after 8/24 or if you're really kind after 11/24, it will give other people at your facility the opportunity to be selected. You remaining on the CPC% until the next panel could mean the difference between being Cat 1 over Cat 2 or being Cat 2 over frozen.

Thanks for the clarification!

 

[RL]

Thanks for the post MJ.

Regarding slot allocation at 4-9 facilities, allocating to 100% just means that these facilities will be on academy grads, NESTers, and prior experience hire's lists of facility choices until those facilities are 100% staffed? Are academy classes still being offered fairly big lists?

This really sucks for certain towers. Nobody is going to choose them because they won't ever get out.

There are rumors at my facility of 7 and below staffed to 120%. Anyone else hear this?

 

[rugbydog11]

Thanks for the post MJ.

Regarding slot allocation at 4-9 facilities, allocating to 100% just means that these facilities will be on academy grads, NESTers, and prior experience hire's lists of facility choices until those facilities are 100% staffed? Are academy classes still being offered fairly big lists?

This really sucks for certain towers. Nobody is going to choose them because they won't ever get out.

They will get out if they are above the national avg. It doesnt mean you can't leave unless they are 100... It means they can continue to accept people to try and get to 100

 

[Dolan]

But lets say you're picking your facility. You get offered a list of 10 choices. Because you're brand new, none of these facilities is higher than a level 6. Also, none of these facilities are places you want to be long term.

The only thing that makes sense is for you to pick the most well staffed facility you're offered. If one is at 85% CPC and one is at 60% CPC, barring some sort of hardship shenanigans getting out of the 60% staffed facility can easily take years longer than getting out of the 85%. You going to the 85% facility is also going to bump up their staffing %, making it all the more attractive to other people picking facilities. Keep in mind your 85% facility will still be available for selection to every new round of hires until it reaches 100%.

This creates a system that renders a lot of locations totally toxic to any sort of career progression. The strong picks stay strong and the weak stay weak. Who in their right mind would pick somewhere like ASE, ACK, any low level tower in CA, etc, under this system? You want to pay to live in Aspen for 10 years while you're trying to ERR out? Seems totally foolish.

By choosing a poorly staffed tower you're all but guaranteeing you never leave until NCEPT goes away or changes.

 

[VikerATC]

MANAGER RANKING, What if
Facility XXX is able to select 6
Facility YYY is eligible to lose 1.

When facility XXX has its turn to select their are only 4 eligible CPCs, two from UNKNOWN and two from YYY.

Who goes?

Question 2 same except there are 7 eligible when Time to select 5 from UNKNOWN 2 from YYY.
What if anything changes?

 

[MJ]

I also got a kick out of the FAA screwing up arguably the easiest color scheme of all time...Green (Good above 5%), Yellow (Caution within 5%), Red (Bad below 5%).

Because the goal is to have all the facilities equal. A80 is just as important as AGC.

There are rumors at my facility of 7 and below staffed to 120%. Anyone else hear this?

This was a rumor/idea from nearly the beginning of the ncept, probably just a remnant of that. The actual change was to allow staffing to 100% (because they were freezing facilities out using the national average as the break point).

MANAGER RANKING, What if
Facility XXX is able to select 6
Facility YYY is eligible to lose 1.

When facility XXX has its turn to select their are only 4 eligible CPCs, two from UNKNOWN and two from YYY.

Who goes?

Question 2 same except there are 7 eligible when Time to select 5 from UNKNOWN 2 from YYY.
What if anything changes?

1) Assuming all the CPCs are available to be selected: Only 1 cpc from YYY could possibly be selected. The person(s) ranked highest should normally be selected. However, the manager ranking is more of a request... the NCEPT panel makes the decision.

2) Same assumption as above: 6 total selections, 1 max from YYY

 

[breakaway2000]

MANAGER RANKING, What if
Facility XXX is able to select 6
Facility YYY is eligible to lose 1.

When facility XXX has its turn to select their are only 4 eligible CPCs, two from UNKNOWN and two from YYY.

Who goes?

Question 2 same except there are 7 eligible when Time to select 5 from UNKNOWN 2 from YYY.
What if anything changes?

Ex 1 - both unknowns go and the one from YYY that the manager ranks higher, unless the manager chooses to not rank, then it will go to the CPC who has had an ERR in longer (save your ERR receipts because the only date the ATM and NCEPT sees is the last update of your ERR, but you can grieve it and win if you can show you've had your ERR in longer)
Ex 2 - All 5 unknowns and same situation as above for YYY.

 

[Move78]

We have to address the ERR submission date elephant in the room. How could this possibly be a factor in any of this? Who made that decision I'd love to know. It should of course go to seniority first but even if we didn't have a union and screw seniority you'd still have no reason to care about the recorded ERR submission date because HR is a slow motion car crash, those dates have 0 integrity. Friggin joke.

 

[breakaway2000]

We have to address the ERR submission date elephant in the room. How could this possibly be a factor in any of this? Who made that decision I'd love to know. It should of course go to seniority first but even if we didn't have a union and screw seniority you'd still have no reason to care about the recorded ERR submission date because HR is a slow motion car crash, those dates have 0 integrity. Friggin joke.

Realistically, the only time it will come in to play is if the ATM and FacRep refuse to do their job. There's no excuse to not rank people and if you're looking at two people on paper, seniority should be a deciding factor.
Where it has and will continue to come in to play is two people from the same facility getting selected for the same facility. They only see your updated ERR date, which means you could be given a Cat 2 release over a Cat 1 release because you had to update your ERR at the wrong time. This is where saving all our your ERR receipts is huge in proving you had your ERR in longer and deserve the Cat 1 release.

 

[Move78]

Yeah I mean if there's 2 getting selected from the same facility to the same facility how does seniority not decide the position in line?

 

[corn4ahead]

Yeah I mean if there's 2 getting selected from the same facility to the same facility how does seniority not decide the position in line?

Because it goes by submission date not seniority in that case.

 

[MJ]

I interpreted this:

Manager Ranking List

Managers have been given guidance from the Director of Operations to no longer rank employees the same or use numbers such as #99. AJG – P21 will coordinate with the ESTs to echo this message going forward. Jeffrey Vincent will return any manager ranking list that does not comply with this guidance.

to mean lists had to be ranked properly, which would make the filing date tiebreaker moot.