Help at last for air traffic controllers

Pub date January 12, 2009
SectionBruce Blog

The bosses who run the FAA have been mistreating the controllers since at least 1981

By Dick Meister

Few government employees have more important responsibilities than the federal air traffic controllers whose primary job is to protect the safety of the ever-growing number of air travelers. Yet few federal employees are more badly treated by their government bosses.

The bosses, who run the Federal Aviation Administration ­ the FAA ­ have been mistreating the controllers since at least 1981. That’s when President Ronald Reagan fired more than 11,500 controllers who, seeking to improve their onerous working conditions, struck in violation of the law that prohibits strikes by federal employees.