av8boy
1st Apr 2004, 19:42
From DR1 www.dr1.com (http://www.dr1.com/) (appears to be official Dominican Republic site) dated 1 APR 04:
Air controller impasse
Air controllers and the government are at war, with the impasse affecting the operation of airports yesterday at the moment of the morning shift changeover. The government called in military air controllers, who worked with those who chose to stay on the job, and made plans to bring in controllers from abroad. Diario Libre mentions that the plan is to bring in Chilean and Mexican air controllers, but points out that this cost would be considerably more than what the local controllers are demanding.
President Mejia yesterday authorized the Civil Aviation Board director, Carlos Alvarez Guzman, to take any measures necessary to guarantee the safety of air travelers. As per Decree 264-04, President Mejia authorized the hiring of national and foreign air navigation technicians.
Yesterday, Bolivar de Leon, the president of the Association of Air Controllers, told El Caribe reporters that the government has not asked them to sit down to talks. He said that they had not convened a work stoppage for yesterday when military air controllers replaced them at their posts. Today, however, sources indicate that they have asked Frank Rainieri of Punta Cana to serve as mediator.
The air controllers are again demanding a 100% wage increase, which would amount to a total of RD$9 million more a month. The air controllers allege they are making less than US$1,000 per month while their colleagues in the US make at least US$5,000 a month for similar work. They argue that their occupation is very stressful and taxing, on top of requiring years of highly-specialized training. Furthermore, there are no local replacements available.
As reported in Hoy newspaper, Alvarez Guzman explained that a year and a half ago the controllers earned approximately RD$16,000 a month. These wages were increased to a range of RD$30,000 to RD$38,000. He said that as president of the association, de Leon earns about RD$50,000 per month.
While the air controllers work in privatized airports, their wages are paid by the Dominican government. The operation of private airports in the Dominican Republic is known to be very lucrative, and the airports pay large sums to the government in taxes. Aviation sources say the air controllers also receive under-the-table subsidies from the private airport operators. Likewise, sources say that air controllers work three days and get four off to compensate for the stress.
The government says that due to the restrictions in place after the signing of the agreement with the IMF, it cannot again increase the wages. To confront the protest of the air controllers, the government called its own military technicians. This has delayed several landings, however as flights are being spaced out to one every half hour, when normally up to 10 airplanes can land at the same time.
Yesterday, the association of pilots of the Dominican Republic announced it was striking in sympathy with the air controllers. A source at Punta Cana's airport says that this is a bonus in disguise, as it reduces the number of domestic flights and thus the work load of the controllers while the situation is being resolved.
Diario Libre reports that while the government says there is no money to meet the demands of the air controllers for wage increases, funds that could have been used have been transferred to a social fund. The move coincides with the final weeks of the Mejia re-election campaign. The newspaper highlights that on 3 March, the Civil Aviation Board agreed to transfer RD$6 million a month of the funds generated by the organization through airport fees to the Comision Presidencial de Apoyo al Desarrollo Barrial. The money would be diverted from the special fund that was created in April 2001 by Decree 461.
As reported in Hoy, Ellis Perez, the spokesman for Aerodom which operates the Las Americas and Puerto Plata airports, urged an end to the impasse. He said the DR cannot risk doing anything to affect the flow of visitors to the country.
From NATCA press release(NATCA.org (http://www.natca.org/mediacenter/pressreleasedetail.asp?id=291) )
DOMINICAN GOVERNMENT’S RECKLESS ACTION LEADS TO UNSAFE SKIES
3/31/2004
WASHINGTON – The National Air Traffic Controllers Association today condemned the actions of the government in the Dominican Republic to lock out its air traffic controller workforce and replace it with unqualified controllers, a move that has resulted in serious safety concerns for that country and also increased demands on U.S. controllers working in Miami who handle the airspace around that Caribbean region.
“Using uncertified, unqualified controllers creates a serious hazard to aircraft,” NATCA Executive Vice President Ruth Marlin said. “The actions of the government in the Dominican Republic are, at best, reckless. Not only is the government refusing to negotiate working conditions with its controllers, it has put the safety of its air traffic control system in jeopardy and we strongly condemn both of these actions.”
Operations at the control center in Santo Domingo were turned over to the military. In addition, the Punta Cana International Airport, not wanting to risk safety at one of the country’s busiest airports, has canceled its operation until the situation is resolved. Several other smaller airports were also closed.
U.S. controllers at the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center were forced to hold traffic into the Dominican Republic for over five hours Wednesday. The action affected 20 flights. Later in the day, to maximize safety, the center increased the spacing between flights entering the Dominican Republic’s airspace.
“Our concern for air safety extends beyond the U.S. borders and we cannot sit silently by while it is jeopardized by the dangerous actions of a foreign government,” Marlin stated. “We would urge the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation to caution air travelers considering visiting the Dominican Republic.”
Air controller impasse
Air controllers and the government are at war, with the impasse affecting the operation of airports yesterday at the moment of the morning shift changeover. The government called in military air controllers, who worked with those who chose to stay on the job, and made plans to bring in controllers from abroad. Diario Libre mentions that the plan is to bring in Chilean and Mexican air controllers, but points out that this cost would be considerably more than what the local controllers are demanding.
President Mejia yesterday authorized the Civil Aviation Board director, Carlos Alvarez Guzman, to take any measures necessary to guarantee the safety of air travelers. As per Decree 264-04, President Mejia authorized the hiring of national and foreign air navigation technicians.
Yesterday, Bolivar de Leon, the president of the Association of Air Controllers, told El Caribe reporters that the government has not asked them to sit down to talks. He said that they had not convened a work stoppage for yesterday when military air controllers replaced them at their posts. Today, however, sources indicate that they have asked Frank Rainieri of Punta Cana to serve as mediator.
The air controllers are again demanding a 100% wage increase, which would amount to a total of RD$9 million more a month. The air controllers allege they are making less than US$1,000 per month while their colleagues in the US make at least US$5,000 a month for similar work. They argue that their occupation is very stressful and taxing, on top of requiring years of highly-specialized training. Furthermore, there are no local replacements available.
As reported in Hoy newspaper, Alvarez Guzman explained that a year and a half ago the controllers earned approximately RD$16,000 a month. These wages were increased to a range of RD$30,000 to RD$38,000. He said that as president of the association, de Leon earns about RD$50,000 per month.
While the air controllers work in privatized airports, their wages are paid by the Dominican government. The operation of private airports in the Dominican Republic is known to be very lucrative, and the airports pay large sums to the government in taxes. Aviation sources say the air controllers also receive under-the-table subsidies from the private airport operators. Likewise, sources say that air controllers work three days and get four off to compensate for the stress.
The government says that due to the restrictions in place after the signing of the agreement with the IMF, it cannot again increase the wages. To confront the protest of the air controllers, the government called its own military technicians. This has delayed several landings, however as flights are being spaced out to one every half hour, when normally up to 10 airplanes can land at the same time.
Yesterday, the association of pilots of the Dominican Republic announced it was striking in sympathy with the air controllers. A source at Punta Cana's airport says that this is a bonus in disguise, as it reduces the number of domestic flights and thus the work load of the controllers while the situation is being resolved.
Diario Libre reports that while the government says there is no money to meet the demands of the air controllers for wage increases, funds that could have been used have been transferred to a social fund. The move coincides with the final weeks of the Mejia re-election campaign. The newspaper highlights that on 3 March, the Civil Aviation Board agreed to transfer RD$6 million a month of the funds generated by the organization through airport fees to the Comision Presidencial de Apoyo al Desarrollo Barrial. The money would be diverted from the special fund that was created in April 2001 by Decree 461.
As reported in Hoy, Ellis Perez, the spokesman for Aerodom which operates the Las Americas and Puerto Plata airports, urged an end to the impasse. He said the DR cannot risk doing anything to affect the flow of visitors to the country.
From NATCA press release(NATCA.org (http://www.natca.org/mediacenter/pressreleasedetail.asp?id=291) )
DOMINICAN GOVERNMENT’S RECKLESS ACTION LEADS TO UNSAFE SKIES
3/31/2004
WASHINGTON – The National Air Traffic Controllers Association today condemned the actions of the government in the Dominican Republic to lock out its air traffic controller workforce and replace it with unqualified controllers, a move that has resulted in serious safety concerns for that country and also increased demands on U.S. controllers working in Miami who handle the airspace around that Caribbean region.
“Using uncertified, unqualified controllers creates a serious hazard to aircraft,” NATCA Executive Vice President Ruth Marlin said. “The actions of the government in the Dominican Republic are, at best, reckless. Not only is the government refusing to negotiate working conditions with its controllers, it has put the safety of its air traffic control system in jeopardy and we strongly condemn both of these actions.”
Operations at the control center in Santo Domingo were turned over to the military. In addition, the Punta Cana International Airport, not wanting to risk safety at one of the country’s busiest airports, has canceled its operation until the situation is resolved. Several other smaller airports were also closed.
U.S. controllers at the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center were forced to hold traffic into the Dominican Republic for over five hours Wednesday. The action affected 20 flights. Later in the day, to maximize safety, the center increased the spacing between flights entering the Dominican Republic’s airspace.
“Our concern for air safety extends beyond the U.S. borders and we cannot sit silently by while it is jeopardized by the dangerous actions of a foreign government,” Marlin stated. “We would urge the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation to caution air travelers considering visiting the Dominican Republic.”