Happy St. Patricks Day!
NATCA in Washington (NiW) May 2-4
Most of you already know this, but whether it’s the FAA or NATCA trying to make a change, almost everything must go through Congress. NATCA works very hard to create and maintain relationships with members of Congress that will work in our favor and promote our interests. One of the ways we accomplish that is through NiW. This is where we can gain attention by showing up as a large group and also, at the same time, acting as constituents and speaking to our respective leaders. If this is something that interests you, you can sign up HERE.
A couple of common questions/concerns:
Don’t worry if it’s your first time going, you won’t be expected to lead any discussions or anything, it’ll be a lot of observing until you get your feet under you.
“I’ve heard NATCA only supports (insert party name) politicians. What if my politics do not align with that?” There is a common misconception that NATCA exclusively supports politicians affiliated with a particular political party. However, as a labor organization, it is in our best interest to align ourselves with those who have our back. The party affiliation of the supporters is of little significance. What truly matters is having supporters from across the political spectrum. This diverse support base empowers NATCA to achieve its goals more effectively.
Airspace Rep
Congrats to Garret Wilkerson as the new ZSE Airpsace Representative. This position will not be replacing any of our current area-specific airspace reps, he will be acting as the single point of contact to the airspace office when it comes to NATCA’s input on facility-level items. We finally have been able to build joint momentum in improving a lot of items in our airspace, but the Airspace Office is currently understaffed. The work they do is very intricate and nuanced, so adding someone that already has experience in that arena should prove to be helpful for all.
Cell Phones / Smart Watches
The Turn Off, Tune-in program has been around for nearly a decade, and so far, we have done well with keeping with its principles, but lately, more and more people in the control room have been using their phones and smart watches. Expect this to be a focus item for them. I am working with the front office to upgrade the charging stations outside the control room.
NATCA Charitable Foundation (NCF) Step Challenge
The 3rd Annual NCF step challenge starts soon, on March 26th, and ends May 9th. Spokane has won this national challenge two years in a row, and I would love to see ZSE kick them off the podium. Please consider signing up (so many people are out walking the parking lot during breaks anyway ;) and supporting a good cause. We are consistently providing local charities with funds from NCF. Sign up HERE.
☘ Amy Sizemore ☘
All Members Meeting Change
Due to a scheduling conflict, the all members meeting date has been changed to Thursday, March 30th at 1 pm, but food will be available at 12:30. It will still be in the East/West Conference room. We will discuss updating our finance policy, upcoming solidarity events, and convention details. As always, there will be time for you to bring up any other items of interest not listed here during the meeting. Your input and participation are vital to ensure we know what is most important to you. Also, there will be tacos.
The control room doors are broken again… Takashi told me that they are getting the contractor out as soon as possible, but in the meantime, be careful.
Amy
All,
The annual NCF Step Challenge is coming up soon. The challenge begins Sunday, March 26, 2023, and runs for 45 days, ending on Tuesday, May 9, 2023. The registration fee is $25 per person. All proceeds to benefit the NATCA Charitable Foundation. GEG has won the step challenge the last 2 years and it’s time to show them that ZSE is better. Sign up HERE and be on the lookout for a ZSE team to join. I know we have a ton of athletes out there, all that bike riding and snowboarding y’all do counts.
Also, with F1 exploding in popularity over the last few years I wanted to see if there is interest in doing a ZSE F1 Fantasy league. It is pretty straightforward forward and the instructions make it easy. It is a salary cap league and I set it to where you only have to set up one team. For this inaugural year, I figured we could just do it for fun and maybe talk stakes next year. If there is enough interest I will try to get a trophy by the end of the year.
Click this link to join: https://fantasy.formula1.com/en/leagues/join/C2RXILBMQ07
Drew
TEAM Training
By now, most of you have gone to the TEAM briefing. This program will replace the training folders and, eventually, most of CEDAR. I have been working with the front office to replace and add open computers for controllers to use. All four computers in the debrief rooms have been replaced, and there are four additional computers to use in what used to be the QC cubicle area. These are all available to be used at any time. Some of the debrief rooms are being used as break rooms, which may become problematic after April 1st when TEAM goes into effect, and training reports must be typed up.
Convention
You’ve probably already seen the announcements, but in case you haven’t, our biennial Convention is this year in Fort Lauderdale. This is the event that has the ability to shape our union and implement policies that guide our leadership. As the saying goes, it is an excellent opportunity to see “how the sausage is made.” If you are interested in going, you can sign up HERE. If you aren’t ready to go for the whole convention but would like a quick introduction to what goes on at Convention, our pre-Convention meeting will be from May 30 - June 1st in Las Vegas. If you are interested in either event, please reply to this email, we need to get a head count.
Still looking for some volunteers to create an events committee… Please let us know if you’re willing to help out. Thanks in advance!
Amy