Belgocontrol ATC strikes 2016

[Acid-drop]

ATC service was disrupted this week. But not by choice. Before and after 22/3 terror attacks, atco's filled in lots of missing services to avoid regulations due to ATC staffing and support aviation. We all want a prosperous national aerodrome and carrier.

Now that we got nothing but blame, even from the aviation community, I am afraid you'll start seeing more of our staffing issues. People will not run the extra miles and stay home on workday 25 or 26 in a month. The consequence of wrong priorities and underrecruiting for years.

If anything, the spotlights should be on our CEO right now, who lacked empathy not to make an agreement not supported by ATC due to safety, right after the terror attacks. He did predict many atco's would not be able to cope and immediately accused us by Notam of collective action. Even when the majority was working while they shouldn't.

So here we are, selfish bastards. Mad at the world and vice versa. Time to start looking for opportunities abroad. The willingness to improve our company and support this management, is simply gone.

Well played, Johan.

This is a post full of honesty, i appreciate.
Its like saying f*** you with a smile. At least its clear.
I guess we are not far from a centralized european control. I guess its what you wanted right ?
If you cant do the job somebody else has to do it, no need for emotions.

[sean1982]

More "sick" ATC controllers. Delays in BRU from 17u onwards. This country is doomed

[Passenger]

Excellent time for industrial action, a Friday evening: they hit tourists on a weekend breakaway and they hit businessmen (m/f) returning home after a day and/or a week in Brussels.

Airports
EBBR (Brussels)
Arrivals regulated due to lack of staffing in the afternoon.
High delays expected after 1700.

Airspace
EBBU (Brussels)
EBBUEEC/HLC and NWC sectors regulated due to staffing.
Moderate delays in EBBUEEC sector.

https://www.public.nm.eurocontrol.int/P ... index.html

[Shengenzone]

There is another shortage of air traffic controllers at Brussels Airport this afternoon, delays can be expected.

[EBBU]

It would appear that having a certain profession excludes people from the possibility of being sick.
I really wonder why all the anger is directed at ATCOs who might very well be really sick?

It is a fact that a realistic HR policy is capable of mitigating the consequences of sick employees.

That this appears to be impossible at Belgocontrol is an indication that the HR policy is not adapted to the requirements of a continuous service.

It is also obvious that the real culprits are the (HR) managers that did not plan in advance. (Or maybe they gave priority to cost reduction instead of assured service...)

Seeing that this planning is part of their job I think we can conclude they did not do what they were hired to do. So maybe they should take responsibility and admit their faulty planning. I would ask them to do better or leave...

[Passenger]

Even the best HR Manager (Torfs Shoes) can't do anything when three store managers report sick at the same time, when their assistant store managers say they're not available and when not one assistant store manager within a 100 km range is available. Three stores will remain closed. But it won't happen with Torfs Shoes - or with any other store: it's called "flexibility in the interest of the clients".

So tell me EBBU: apparently still no result with the negociations about your new pension plan?

[sean1982]

It would appear that having a certain profession excludes people from the possibility of being sick.
I really wonder why all the anger is directed at ATCOs who might very well be really sick?

It is a fact that a realistic HR policy is capable of mitigating the consequences of sick employees.

That this appears to be impossible at Belgocontrol is an indication that the HR policy is not adapted to the requirements of a continuous service.

It is also obvious that the real culprits are the (HR) managers that did not plan in advance. (Or maybe they gave priority to cost reduction instead of assured service...)

Seeing that this planning is part of their job I think we can conclude they did not do what they were hired to do. So maybe they should take responsibility and admit their faulty planning. I would ask them to do better or leave...

imagine some people would go sick on purpose (everyone can fake a gastro enteritis no?) so people like you can go to the media and on forums like this just to say what you just said?
Sounds familiar? probably not :p
In the mean time you're killing this country's economy though. Well done! *slow clap*

[EBBU]

****sigh****

Whatever guys, whatever...

[Homo Aeroportus]

It is quite disappointing to see that this important subject goes again emotional.
Could someone enlighten me with factual information?

I do realize that training a new ATCO does take time and hence anticipation of the future needs is key to avoid shortages.
So how many movements did we have say 1, 2 or 3 years ago and how many more do we have now?
And/or how many ATCOs less today than say 1, 2 or 3 years ago?

Thank you.

H.A.

[Nevihta]

There has been delays and airport closures almost every days for a couple of weeks, due to staff shortage, but papers didn't talk about it, so our "media-aviation-experts" neither...
There is no stand-by existing for ATCO's in Belgium, and that very point is by itself a professional fault from management.
This means that when someone is sick, the guy coming back was on holiday, or on week-end... when you don't have any more week-end, and few holidays...

[Passenger]

There is no stand-by existing for ATCO's in Belgium, and that very point is by itself a professional fault from management. This means that when someone is sick, the guy coming back was on holiday, or on week-end... when you don't have any more week-end, and few holidays...

Isn't it strange that all possible volunteers are enjoying a breakaway or a weekend or a long holiday every time they are not in the tower? No one seems to enjoy a day off at home. No one needs to cut the grass. Can't blame you, your salary allows it, but it's unfair towards those who pay your salary.

There has been delays and airport closures almost every days for a couple of weeks, due to staff shortage, but papers didn't talk about it, so our "media-aviation-experts" neither...

Yep, they should forbit those forums where people are allowed to post their opinion. But just wondering - do you have any idea about the damage your industrial action causes to the airport, to the airlines and to the general aviation & travel trade?

[sean1982]

There has been delays and airport closures almost every days for a couple of weeks, due to staff shortage, but papers didn't talk about it, so our "media-aviation-experts" neither...
There is no stand-by existing for ATCO's in Belgium, and that very point is by itself a professional fault from management.
This means that when someone is sick, the guy coming back was on holiday, or on week-end... when you don't have any more week-end, and few holidays...

You think I haven't noticed the slots coming into/out of BRU.
Should I report every slot that I get here? I will if you want me to?
Again, easy to shoot management if you first create a situation where the gun is already to the head.

[Nevihta]

But just wondering - do you have any idea about the damage your industrial action causes to the airport, to the airlines and to the general aviation & travel trade?

When there will be an industrial action, you will know it.
As you look like an expert in economics and work matters.
In a staff of 300 people, what is the average number of sick people every day ?
if you add that the job is more exhausting and stressful than the average (nightshifts....)
If you add that workers have a huge backpack of holidays and rest hours not taken...
If you add that most of them work more than 10 days in a row (and are not legally allowed to do more than 12)
If you add that it's proven that there is not enough manning
You should also considerate that it's not allowed to make extra hours on a 3-month basis

what's the probability that a staff shortage happens, and that you find no-one willing, or being able (legally for example) to come back to work...

And for the record, most of the ATCO's are fully aware (probably more than you) of the economical damages of such flow measures. And if the rules were to be applied strictly, there would even be more delays/cancellations.

Do you have any idea where all the conditions we are meeting now lead... It sounds like Buizingen but starts with a U...

[sean1982]

How many people work 9-5?
How many people nightshifts?
How many people have their annual leave not denied because of circumstances? Are they all suddenly going sick now?
How many people how the luxury of not making extra hours on a 3-month basis?

Must be so hard to come to work a bit more than you were initially contracted but are being rewarded for royally How many people have that luxury?

People would get gastro-enteritis for less no?

[Passenger]

Seems someone is enjoying a late lunch:

Flights to Brussels, going into holding near Hasselt:

Germanwings 4U-2164
Adria airways ADR-394
Brussels Airlines SN-2906
Brussels Airlines SN-2638
Brussels Airlines SN-2812
Lufthansa LH-1022

[thalenoi]

And btw, the ATCs deserve every penny of their "royal" salaries, just like pilots or other professions not everybody can qualify for. Not everybody has the abilities to become an ATC or a pilot. Being jealous of that is just being stupidly jealous !

Not knowing about ATC's but having worked 10 years for an airline I can comment on "some" pilots....

I was dead-heading as an IT manager from BKK and we had a dead-heading crew on board.
After landing at home base the captain of the DH crew told them: don't forget to mention 24h "on duty" (they boarded at HKG), yeah, reading books and having stupid discussions with me: "where to buy the cheapest PC on the planet?" I would not dare to add 1h overtime on my time-sheet during my overseas work travels, my boss said "you have a managers salary, no overtime, time zone, night time, sat-sun premium, no 90 usd per diem when you sit your arse in a flight seat unlike our pilots.

Most of them had only two discussion items in their free time: money and booze.

It is not about jealousy, it's about correct treatment from management, that may be ATC related.
I do believe most of the management of the airline I worked for were rather incompetent.

[Poiu]

Don't forget what happened in Uberlingen due to a shortage of Atcos!

[shockcooling]

...
I was dead-heading as an IT manager from BKK and we had a dead-heading crew on board.
After landing at home base the captain of the DH crew told them: don't forget to mention 24h "on duty" (they boarded at HKG), yeah, reading books and having stupid discussions with me: "where to buy the cheapest PC on the planet?" I would not dare to add 1h overtime on my time-sheet during my overseas work travels, my boss said "you have a managers salary, no overtime, time zone, night time, sat-sun premium, no 90 usd per diem when you sit your arse in a flight seat unlike our pilots.
...

I don't want to discuss with you on your one time experience of how crews are or what they do for their salaries, but here's my view of your story.
In this case it might have been that the captain just reminded that they performed a duty of 24h, maybe they are not paid for the DH, but it counts as duty time for their rest calculation. Imagine that they arrive in home base after this DH and after just a couple of hours could have started their next duty?
As for what you as a manager earned, this is most probably what is stipulated in your individual contract. Most airlines work with a CLA just to cover all aspects you mention to make it fair to the whole community, just to imagine my 'small' airline who alone operates with 2000+ flying staff has to handle individual requests etc...
You were a manager, you should have known a little bit more me thinks?

[Passenger]

Soon after the 22/03 terror attacks, there were quite some meetings between airlines and the travel trade about how to recover. I was present at one of those task forces when all smartphones started ringing: rumours about an ATC strike at BRU (the organized “unfit to fly” – see first post here). Although the meeting was already straight to the point, it became even more interesting during the coffee time afterwards. Someone from an airline told me he was extremely furious because Belgian ATCO’s already have better conditions than in neighboring countries (probably as a result of previous strikes?). When my memory is good, this is what I was told:

- a normal working day is 7 hours – normal week is 5 days;
- the average between time at the screen and rest time is 1 to 1;
- a night shift counts as a 14 hours working day. Therefore, a week of night shifts is just 3 nights (with 7 hours overtime as bonus);
- it’s not abnormal that a break happens one hour before end of the day roster, thus allowing to go home one hour earlier.

As a listener to ATCLive.net, I’m really impressed abouth their skills. Really, I am. And I fully understand that stress at work is absolutely not done. And I even accept that they’re paid extremely good, compared to all other people at the airport. But are Belgian ATC’s not already far beyond “no stress at work”?

[Atco EBBR]

Can't resist replying to this one. A couple of weeks ago, I received an overview of my working year 2015: 225 days. To compare: normal at NATS (ATC in th UK) is 180 days for a higher pay.

I'm pretty sure that financial conditions at eurocontrol are better than ours, idem for LVNL (Dutch ATC). Don't know about their number of working days.

I'm also pretty sure that the number of working days for the French is lower than ours...

DFS (German ATC): an ex-colleague of mine now works in Gatwick and she as well didn't loose financially.

So good conditions, yes - although I'd like to be home a bit more often. But best of the surrounding countries, I have my doubts...