PATCO Union Scenarios

August 5th, 1981 was a day that should never be forgotten by ATC controllers and labor unions forever. On August 5th President Ronald Reagan made good on his promise to fire and subsequently ban the rehiring of all PATCO Union controllers that were performing an illegal strike from working for the government again. PATCO which represented the majority of U.S. air traffic controllers was attempting to negotiate with the FAA for improvements to their contract. Though it is illegal for federal employees to strike the air traffic controllers should not have been fired and the FAA and federal government should have negotiated in good faith. According to Round (1985) there were many aspects of the contract that PATCO was trying to improve including

The package that PATCO was seeking would cost around $770 million dollars. The FAA countered with a package worth $40 million that included a shorter work week and slight pay raises for few controllers. The offer from the FAA was immediately rejected which pressed the controllers to strike. The union was willing to perform an illegal strike. The PATCO thought that they would have an overwhelming public support as the country at the time was tired of big government and the its over the people. PATCO failed to gain public support by having a poor public relations campaign, instead of hearing the poor conditions that the controllers were dealing with the public only heard what the federal government and the FAA were telling them. “The FAA argued that controllers were paid too much, that they worked short hours that automation had made their jobs easier, that there were ready replacements for those who left their jobs, ad infinitum.” (Nordlund, 1998, p. 16) Easily swayed by propaganda from the federal government the public were led to believe that the controllers were a group of overpaid, underworked spoiled employees that thought they were irreplaceable. This lack of sentiment was a large factor leading to the demise of

One of the differences was that the controllers union was much smaller and was an easier target for the government to make an example of. With the swift action of President Reagan by firing and banning the striking controllers that did not return to work a precedent had been sent of no tolerance towards illegal strikes. President Reagan was taking a risk in firing the controllers and breaking their union. ”But the risk paid off for Reagan in the short run. He showed federal workers and Soviet leaders alike how though he could be. Although there were 39 illegal work stoppages against the federal government between 1962 and 1981, no significant federal job actions followed Reagan’s firing of the Patco strikers. His forceful handling of the walkout, meanwhile, impressed the Soviets, strengthening his hand in the talks he later pursued with Mikhail S.Gorbachev.” McCartin