They are getting closer to asking the right questions. Mr Harfield's 'economy with the truth' might bite him on the arse, one day. Perhaps in the very near future?
eg. Fawcett:...Would it be accurate to say that during the period you are describing, from 2006-08 to the present, you have struggled to maintain your mature workforce in terms of air traffic controllers?
Harfield:.....But, overall for the national workforce, we have always been above the mature level.
Fawcett: That is extremely at odds with the vast number of media and other reports about air traffic controllers having to work extended amounts of overtime to make up for shortfalls in the workforce and with some of the discussions about the significant need to ramp up your training numbers....
Harfield: .....Before that, I need to correct the record, Senator. The average amount of overtime experienced by air traffic controllers is one shift per month. That is on average. Therefore, they are doing seven to eight hours per month on average across the workforce of 950 operational air traffic controllers.....
I'd be interested to hear what those currently working there have to say about that?
Also, it is apparent why they don't want TIBA at all cost. TIBA is quantifiable. The amount of TIBA is reportable to senators, and is a clear indication that staff numbers ARE NOT all hunky-dory. They point down the road of the inference in some of the questions: That executives make more money when the organisation makes more money i.e. that safety IS NOT the primary focus of executives, or their decisions (over issues such as staffing). When they simply 'flow restrict' a volume of airspace- achieving the same thing as a TIBA but with out any paper trail- it has the same result; the airlines are shafted, the workers are flogged harder (in fewer numbers), the AsA bottom line looks good, the execs get their bonuses, and the good senators are none the wiser.
Maybe.
