Elperro, your simplified view will result in a distortion of the truth, as it assumes that every controller during the period you mentioned continued doing the same duties. As explained by others- they didnt. AsA management attempted a restructure of duties, which they were understaffed to implement.
It's a huge problem in the world of ATC (or any safety critical service- big hint at NASA and what happened there) when you try and apply 'business principles' to the organisation. There has been a lot written already about what happens when you try (NASA). This doesnt seem to worry the decision makers, who continue to steer the same course.
Good luck with it all. It will take years to fix, and they haven't even started. Indeed, there doesnt seem to be any acknowlegement yet that they might've gotten it wrong. It'll all be better in a month, apparently
