Federal buyout???

32andBelow said:
I know that. But people are claiming we are exempt? All I know now is i was sent the offer. So we shouldn’t think the offer that was sent to us isn’t valid? Why send it then it stated that agency heads have the right to exclude people basically.
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Once the faa decides who is eligible I’ll be sure to remind to the outcome. Don’t be so sure of things and act like it’s a sure thing, because it’s not.
 
HurryUpandWait said:
Is this considered severance or VSIP?
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It is neither. It is, in effect, paid admin leave. Severance is payment for involuntary separation... and this is a means to get federal employees to leave of their own volition. And it is not VSIP as VSIP must be authorized by OPM. This scheme, IMO, is simply a means to get around severance pay and the VSIP (Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment) pay cap of $25k. Yes, they are paying you for 6 months or so to leave; however, you're leaving voluntarily and there is no mechanism to provide you priority in rehiring.

From Fed News, it now appears the OPM is also going to grant all agencies the authority to offer its employees VERA (Voluntary Early Retirement Authority). It is doubtful, however, that VERA will be offered to ATC as VERA requirements are the same as for 2152s (age 50 with 20 years or any age with 25 years).

But who knows? All of this is subject to change on a daily basis depending upon the mood of 2-3 people in a country of 330 million. LOL.
 
echster said:
It is neither. It is, in effect, paid admin leave. Severance is payment for involuntary separation... and this is a means to get federal employees to leave of their own volition. And it is not VSIP as VSIP must be authorized by OPM. This scheme, IMO, is simply a means to get around severance pay and the VSIP (Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment) pay cap of $25k. Yes, they are paying you for 6 months or so to leave; however, you're leaving voluntarily and there is no mechanism to provide you priority in rehiring.

From Fed News, it now appears the OPM is also going to grant all agencies the authority to offer its employees VERA (Voluntary Early Retirement Authority). It is doubtful, however, that VERA will be offered to ATC as VERA requirements are the same as for 2152s (age 50 with 20 years or any age with 25 years).

But who knows? All of this is subject to change on a daily basis depending upon the mood of 2-3 people in a country of 330 million. LOL.
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I know you’re just as much in the dark as anyone else, but is there gonna be official guidance from the FAA (or anyone) on whether this does or doesn’t apply to us? Just absolutely mind blowing to me that it’s a few days away from the “deadline” to resign and literally NO ONE knows whether it pertains to atc or not
 
ExcessivePhraseology said:
I know you’re just as much in the dark as anyone else, but is there gonna be official guidance from the FAA (or anyone) on whether this does or doesn’t apply to us? Just absolutely mind blowing to me that it’s a few days away from the “deadline” to resign and literally NO ONE knows whether it pertains to atc or not
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No idea... but I would never voluntarily resign from federal service no matter the offer. If I wasn't eligible to retire with an immediate annuity, I would only voluntarily leave if offered VERA or VSIP. Of course, if told to leave involuntarily, I would take the severance pay. But I would never take the current offer of "stay-at-home and get paid to do nothing" for admin pay and resigning effective September 30 in lieu of any program mentioned earlier.

To answer your question... I mean, I believe we got the DoT Secretary the day of, and an FAA Administrator (Acting) the day after, the DCA incident. We need to have some form of "leadership" to look at things, talk to people, etc., before making a decision.

My two cents: I would be shocked if any personnel program applied to 2152s, but I would be even more shocked if everyone in the FAA was exempted from these programs. We all know the government does stupid things every day. If given the opportunity to replace high-year (and high cost) personnel with fresh blood (and lower cost) by reducing the amount paid related to civilian pay and benefits, they're going to do it.
 
Shikaka said:
Screw it let's all take the offer
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I'd like to think in another world where one of us were in charge of NATCA, we'd have sent out a letter like this.

"Good morning my fellow Air Traffic Controllers. Last night, America suffered its first fatal accident in 15 years. It is a time of grief for many of us as we learn the details of this awful incident. The National Airspace System is decaying. The vast majority of facilities are using cold-war era equipment; all 21 ARTCC's alone use buildings 58-64 years old. Maintenance is nearly impossible, and is prohibitively expensive when it is. We're suffering a shortage of thousands of trained controllers, with over 90% of facilities in the United States being understaffed. Many controllers have been working 6 day, 10 hour a week shifts regularly for months, if not years. Many retire because of the awful conditions and pay that has failed to keep up with inflation and the private sector; even the FAA's most generous estimates of its own training plan indicate that we will only increase the total workforce by a fraction of what is necessary for at least half a decade. We, and the FAA have been fully aware of these problems, and now that the public is as well, the government should finally take action.

The issue? They did. They're telling us to resign. Even though Congress shuts down the nation whenever they want to drum up votes for legislation, stalling our training and hiring. Even though they fail to keep steady leadership at the FAA, and cycle in new executives constantly. Even though they deny funding upgrades, pay increases, or even maintenance of existing infrastructure; Washington still has the gall to ask us to resign. It's not something any of us ever expected. What can we possibly do?

Well, why not take them at their word? After all; this is a very kind offer! We can resign immediately and take home eight months of pay? They couldn't possibly send out an email like this on accident, so we know they're serious about this. After all, as bad as conditions are in the NAS, we are government employees. We are not legally allowed to strike, and as proud law-abiding Americans who clock in every day to keep the airspace safe, we would never, ever do such a thing. I know that it'll be awkward to try and land on your feet after a resignation like this, but since they'll give us a generous exit offer I think we'll be fine. Of course, if they fail to offer us what they have promised, we have our large repository of dues that you all generously helped build up for many years to both offer a living allowance, and hire a crack team of lawyers to take what they owe us. We'll also embark on a full media press, taking interviews, offering testimony to Congress & activating our lobbying group in Washington to demand three things to fix the NAS; 1: Funding for a fast paced modernization of facilities, radars, communications & other essential equipment, 2: Reforms to the employment system which guarantees sufficient staffing at every facility, consisting of both scaled up training and pay increases to match both inflation and private sector salaries. Not just for controllers, but other essential employees of the FAA such as members of PASS (who I have communicated with & also agree that we should take this offer simultaneously) and 3: The depoliticization of the NAS, with long-term professional management that lasts throughout multiple administrations, where flight slots, routes, and safety practices are set by the NAS's stakeholders without undue pressure from politicians. We are Americans. We invented powered flight. We won't accept such an awful system any longer; if we can work together to fund and reform the FAA then we can once again become world leaders in airspace efficiency and, most importantly, safety.

I understand that this is a very serious matter, and nowhere in NATCA's constitution does it give me any power to decide whether or not you accept this offer. I am only asking you to consider it as a personal suggestion from me, who you hopefully trust from my constant, supportive presence on social media, traditional news, and union events. Please, take your time to decide whether this is right for you. If you do, you will no longer be a NATCA member. But I know you'll hate being unsubscribed to mailing lists, so you should sign on to my new personal newsletter: "Air Traffic, Barbeque & Mahjong" where I will send curated news on the aviation industry, delicious BBQ recipes taste tested by yours truly, and setting up online Mahjong matches for both casual or competitive play. My personal commentary will offer a depth of insight, also including whether or not I think that Capitol Hill has guaranteed sufficient reforms & support to the FAA for us to consider, perhaps, going back to join the Air Traffic Organization.

Regards, NATCA Prez"
 
The River said:
I'd like to think in another world where one of us were in charge of NATCA, we'd have sent out a letter like this.

"Good morning my fellow Air Traffic Controllers. Last night, America suffered its first fatal accident in 15 years. It is a time of grief for many of us as we learn the details of this awful incident. The National Airspace System is decaying. The vast majority of facilities are using cold-war era equipment; all 21 ARTCC's alone use buildings 58-64 years old. Maintenance is nearly impossible, and is prohibitively expensive when it is. We're suffering a shortage of thousands of trained controllers, with over 90% of facilities in the United States being understaffed. Many controllers have been working 6 day, 10 hour a week shifts regularly for months, if not years. Many retire because of the awful conditions and pay that has failed to keep up with inflation and the private sector; even the FAA's most generous estimates of its own training plan indicate that we will only increase the total workforce by a fraction of what is necessary for at least half a decade. We, and the FAA have been fully aware of these problems, and now that the public is as well, the government should finally take action.

The issue? They did. They're telling us to resign. Even though Congress shuts down the nation whenever they want to drum up votes for legislation, stalling our training and hiring. Even though they fail to keep steady leadership at the FAA, and cycle in new executives constantly. Even though they deny funding upgrades, pay increases, or even maintenance of existing infrastructure; Washington still has the gall to ask us to resign. It's not something any of us ever expected. What can we possibly do?

Well, why not take them at their word? After all; this is a very kind offer! We can resign immediately and take home eight months of pay? They couldn't possibly send out an email like this on accident, so we know they're serious about this. After all, as bad as conditions are in the NAS, we are government employees. We are not legally allowed to strike, and as proud law-abiding Americans who clock in every day to keep the airspace safe, we would never, ever do such a thing. I know that it'll be awkward to try and land on your feet after a resignation like this, but since they'll give us a generous exit offer I think we'll be fine. Of course, if they fail to offer us what they have promised, we have our large repository of dues that you all generously helped build up for many years to both offer a living allowance, and hire a crack team of lawyers to take what they owe us. We'll also embark on a full media press, taking interviews, offering testimony to Congress & activating our lobbying group in Washington to demand three things to fix the NAS; 1: Funding for a fast paced modernization of facilities, radars, communications & other essential equipment, 2: Reforms to the employment system which guarantees sufficient staffing at every facility, consisting of both scaled up training and pay increases to match both inflation and private sector salaries. Not just for controllers, but other essential employees of the FAA such as members of PASS (who I have communicated with & also agree that we should take this offer simultaneously) and 3: The depoliticization of the NAS, with long-term professional management that lasts throughout multiple administrations, where flight slots, routes, and safety practices are set by the NAS's stakeholders without undue pressure from politicians. We are Americans. We invented powered flight. We won't accept such an awful system any longer; if we can work together to fund and reform the FAA then we can once again become world leaders in airspace efficiency and, most importantly, safety.

I understand that this is a very serious matter, and nowhere in NATCA's constitution does it give me any power to decide whether or not you accept this offer. I am only asking you to consider it as a personal suggestion from me, who you hopefully trust from my constant, supportive presence on social media, traditional news, and union events. Please, take your time to decide whether this is right for you. If you do, you will no longer be a NATCA member. But I know you'll hate being unsubscribed to mailing lists, so you should sign on to my new personal newsletter: "Air Traffic, Barbeque & Mahjong" where I will send curated news on the aviation industry, delicious BBQ recipes taste tested by yours truly, and setting up online Mahjong matches for both casual or competitive play. My personal commentary will offer a depth of insight, also including whether or not I think that Capitol Hill has guaranteed sufficient reforms & support to the FAA for us to consider, perhaps, going back to join the Air Traffic Organization.

Regards, NATCA Prez"
Click to expand...
We should’ve hit them with a national sick day after Trumps press conference.
 
32andBelow said:
We're going to keep all our safety positions in place, no early retirement. We're all going to stay and work and make sure our skies are safe.”

Duffy says you have no choice.
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I think you're missing the irony of my statement that we can also just quit.
 

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