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PITTSTON TWP. — Air traffic controller Lenny Ameika says he and his colleagues have to be nothing less than perfect on the job.
That’s why he worries about the potential impact of personal distractions caused by the ongoing federal government shutdown that has left them and hundreds of thousands of other federal employees working without pay for the past month.
“You are bringing in stresses that are not normally there,” Ameika said Thursday as he and other controllers gathered in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport (AVP) terminal to hand out pamphlets calling for an end to the shutdown.
“If we make a mistake it’s catastrophic,” said Ameika, 36, a 12-year veteran of the trade who also serves as local president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA). “And now you’re worrying that you can’t afford to feed your family this week … the banks are calling, the credit card companies are calling.”
“That is on your mind, and you can’t forget that” when working in the tower,” Ameika added.
NATCA issued a release this week outlining what they see as “serious safety concerns” due to the shutdown, which began at midnight on Dec. 22.
“Staffing in our air traffic control facilities is already at a 30-year low and controllers are only able to maintain the system’s efficiency and capacity by working overtime, including 10-hour days and 6-day workweeks at many of our nation’s busiest facilities,” the statement said.
The shutdown also has resulted in a halt to training of new controllers, while 3,000 Federal Aviation Administration safety professionals who support the industry have been furloughed, NATCA added.
Ameika, 36, has doubts about how long controllers can continue to keep air traffic moving normally under such conditions.
“We take pride in our safety. We won’t take on what we can’t handle,” Ameika said. “You’re going to start seeing slowdowns.”
Donations mount
At an airport board meeting earlier Thursday, Executive Director Carl R. Beardsley said there has been a significant outpouring of community support for AVP’s federal employees in the form of donations to a food drive launched last week.
The donations are stored in a secure room in the terminal, where tables of canned goods, cereal, other non-perishable food and personal care items are being distributed to those who need them.
Individual travellers have chipped in, he said, as have Black and Brass Coffee Roasting Company, Mike Walsh Electrical Inc., and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, who filled up a minivan with donations from game attendees.
“The employees are so thankful,” Beardsley said.
Trump: Make adjustments
The attitude from some in Washington on Thursday seemed less supportive.
President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump said employees’ “little bit of pain” was worth it for the good of the country, according to the Associated Press, while Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross questioned why cash-poor workers were using food banks instead of taking out loans.
The president himself says workers simply need to “make adjustments,” the AP reported.
Ameika acknowledged that some banks have offered no-interest loans, and that some federal employees are tapping into their savings.
What the Duryea resident said he and other controllers can’t easily do is seek out a second job, given how much time they’re already working.
“We don’t want to be used as pawns in this game,” Ameika said. “Whatever they’re arguing about has nothing to do with us. We just want to be paid for the work we’re doing.”
