NATCA president says ‘real fallout’ of shutdown is ‘erosion’ of public safety, not politics
The consequences of the ongoing government shutdown aren’t about politics
or budgets, according to National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) President Nick Daniels, who says the “real fallout” pertains to a potential slide in public safety as air traffic controllers must now focus on surviving without pay instead of their work.
Daniels spoke to reporters during a press conference on Monday, the first time in history that air traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals received their second zero-dollar paycheck as the government shutdown stretched into its 41st day.
“If you want to know what the real fallout of this shutdown is, it’s not a budget line,” he said. “It is the smallest and the most dangerous shift of all. When the most disciplined safety workforce in America is forced to think about survival instead of public safety. This is the cost.”
Daniels said many air traffic controllers are continuing to show up to work – even working overtime, in some cases – despite not getting paid. He detailed how the workers are now facing additional stress on top of the already demanding job due to not getting paid.
“But now they must focus on childcare instead of traffic flows. Food for their families instead of runway separation,” Daniels said. “This is not politics. This is not ideology. This is the erosion of the safety margin.”
Daniels called on Congress “act immediately” to reopen the government, saying “enough is enough.”
“Now history will remember who is responsible for the shutdown,” he said. “The public and media will debate who won. But we all know who carried the weight of it and who has to pick up the pieces when it finally ends.”
“It’s us, the federal workforce, that has been the rope in this game of tug of war,” he continued, calling on Congress to ensure compensation for all those who have not been paid during the prolonged shutdown.
