ATC IssuesA place where pilots may enter the 'lions den' that is Air Traffic Control in complete safety and find out the answers to all those obscure topics which you always wanted to know the answer to but were afraid to ask.
Ive had enough of this, its time to make a stand and stop the rot.
Ive played ball in my management job role and despite reservations about the nature of the companys direction in recent times, I have stuck by the party line.
But this is seriously pushing my buttons now and I will be fighting for my pensions come oct30. They better have something earth shattering to change my mind. I doubt it.
Regardless of the outcome in tha ballot, I am done with NSL vision 201111111111 and all the other b******s.
I shall be looking after no1 and my nearest and dearest from here on in.
Not forgetting of course that those engineers who are made redundant will get paid less following the companies clever manipulation of the recent changes to age discrimination laws.
Surely though no NATS permanent engineer should go whilst we are paying for contract staff in any of our engineering depts. Where the heeck are the union in this.
Sooner the 'No' vote the better or any of us with anything like any time invested in the company are going to get shafted.
I have just come through a redundancy process in my current job, and your comment on temps / contract will not match what happens. We lost loads and loads of perm staff, and 2 weeks later had temps coming through the doors in different job titles. No pension rights, reduced sick pay, no holiday accruement, and on a shorted notice period if required - the utopia of management! Plus if they are contract staff rather than temp, chances are they have been paid up front...
Redundancy legislation is rubbish, we took every angle to try to catch our managers out. Now we are operating a QC department at 25% staff level, and more workload as these temps are in the production area, sending us more stuff to QC!
The only option is for the engineers to find fault in the selection criteria. Last in / first out no longer washes due to age discrimination legislation!
The Airline group need pressure put on them from the majority shareholders, the Government. The Newspapers need to be stirred up also !
Don't rule out NATS becoming fully Nationalised again, I seem to remember happier times.........
Nationalised Air Traffic Services How does that sound Mr Barron
Having spoken to a few engineers, not only do they ensure the smooth running of the day to day operation, but when things really go wrong ie last week, they are invaluable. Does reducing engineer numbers reduce safety????
um........
Perhaps we should be looking to the Whiteley activity centre for cost savings!
engineers are vital to the safe running of an ops room. H24.
Being told that something can't get looked at because there is not the staff is not going to cut it. If something is not right in the ops room or behind the scenes it needs attention immediately.
Location: ISZ - not the end of the world, but you can see it from here.
Posts: 284
This is the letter my MP has sent to Alastair Darling.
Dear Alastair
I write on behalf of several of my constituents who work as Air Traffic Controllers
My constituents are concerned at proposed changes to their pension scheme. Their primary concern centres around a limit on future pensionable pay increases. Effectively, they feel, this does away with the final salary scheme as it stands at the moment. It is undoubtedly the case as it amounts to a devaluation of their retirement income, since it will no longer be linked to their salaries.
My constituents were under the impression that their pension benefits were protected by an Act of Parliament. This appears to be at odds with the proposed changes. Can you clarify the situation?
I am aware that the possibility of industrial action has been mentioned. My constituents feel that this would be a very damaging course of action for all sides. Nevertheless, they are of the opinion the longer the continued uncertainty goes on, the more attractive industrial action will look to their colleagues.
I would be grateful for your thoughts on this matter
I still don't remember those happier times. The same exercise to reduce H24 engineering staff at the Airports happened prior to PPP as did the closing of regional maintenance bases. In fact staff cuts were made to Operational Engineering all through the 90's.
It's also worth remembering that contract staff and those at Whiteley are real people with families and mortgages too. Many of the contract staff in engineering departments were hired to avoid the redundancy and pension liabilities and will be far worse off than the permanent staff if they are laid off.
Were you employed by NATS before it was part privatised, or were you with another company ?
My happy times were with NATS , when PPL was part of the cadetship, when XMAS parties with booze were allowed in the canteen, when we had plenty staff, when managers were good guys you could respect, when EG's were the norm, when the car park wasn't full of office workers cars MON-FRI and empty at the weekend when we are working our bo**ocks off..........need I go on?
Last edited by Air.Farce.1 : 8th October 2008 at 16:48.
Mar 11 2007
From The Sunday Times
Staff at National Air Traffic Services (NATS) appreciate the fact that their career paths are given clear direction by their employer.
Employees give NATS a 63% positive score for their work being good for personal growth, 64% for being able to make a valuable contribution to the success of the organisation and 73% for work being stimulating, the latter a top 10 score
even have memories of the office staff taking their coffee back to their office so that the operational staff could have a table in the coffee bar at LATCC.
Well I just ran the handy gadget that HR have posted on their site on NATSNet that lets you work out what effect all this will have on your pension as an individual.
Mine comes out as a 13% reduction in annual pension at age 60 [but I do get an extra £30 per year ]
That's the equivalent of the annual SAGA holiday shot in the arse then. Mrs Boffins will be ever so pleased
Beginning to think that the argument for a "YES" vote is going to have to be really convincing to get me to cut my own leg off.
At least we have now got a shiny book full of hard information so that we may better inform our collective decision. Can't wait for the tale of woe which will seek to gain our allegiance...
Surely the company should be doing all it can to retain (sorry this is about ATCO's) ATCO's and offering a better pension deal. If any more leave then all this saving will mean nothing to the fines imposed for delays. And if it offers a better deal it should be for all employee's. nuff said
I am about £3,000 a year worse off on my pension under the proposed new scheme.
I intend to live until 90, so I will be about £100,000 worse off. That's £100,000 less for my children/grandchildren.
Saw the link in work today - at last some hard information.
If I go on until 80 years old I'll be £8000 a year worse off!
That makes £160,000 less in pension payment during retirement!!
The only way they'll get my Yes vote is give me a lump sum of £160,000 now.
Younger staff are gonna lose far more than me in retirement - They'd be CRAZY to vote Yes.
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