December 2023 New England Bi-Monthly Regional Update #2
From Bryan Krampovitis, NATCA New England ARVP
The holiday season is upon us, and I want to take a moment to extend my gratitude and appreciation to each member of NATCA New England. This year has been a testament to your unwavering dedication, resilience, and commitment to our union and professions.
The past year presented its own unique set of challenges to our workforce. However, your professionalism and expertise have shone brightly through it all. From enduring threats of government shutdowns lingering into the final hours of funding deadlines, grappling with short staffing necessitating mandatory overtime, to the exhaustive training required for certifications, your tireless efforts have upheld the respect our union, its members, and our profession rightfully deserve.
I also wish to express gratitude to the many members who diligently serve on our regional leadership team. Often working behind the scenes, their contributions may go unnoticed in their respective facilities. Individuals like Jim Basford at A90, who plays a crucial role on our Drug and Alcohol Committee. While his work may not directly impact members in his building, the time and dedication he invests yield benefits for all members in New England and our union nationally. Another remarkable member, also from A90, Nick Marangos, has excelled as the regional LR lead, leading to exceptional results in addressing grievances.
Shannon Lyman from ZBW shoulders the substantial responsibility of timely updates, managing our social media presence, and countless behind-the-scenes projects that enable our regional leadership team to achieve their goals. Jake Detwiler’s meticulous work on NCEPT has ensured that members in our region and across the country receive the utmost from our NCEPT process, highlighting multiple issues throughout the year that led to moves that would otherwise not have been accomplished. Seth Myers’ commitment to our safety process ensures that our region doesn’t merely fulfill safety requirements but truly prioritizes safety, while Jamie Green navigates the challenging task of leading our regional legislative team through government shutdowns and associated legislative efforts, sometimes from one shutdown threat right into another a week or so later.
This is not an exhaustive list of the individuals who contribute to the success of our region, but I wanted to spotlight a few whose efforts might not be as visible in their own facilities. Without the hard work of our entire regional leadership team and the dedicated teams and workgroups in each facility, our success wouldn’t be nearly as remarkable. Our region’s commitment to excellence remains fundamental to our achievements. As we embrace the holiday season and anticipate the new year, I am immensely grateful for the privilege of working with such an exceptional group of individuals.
May this holiday season grant you well-deserved rest, moments of joy with your loved ones, and an abundance of peace and happiness. Thank you for your hard work, unwavering dedication, and relentless pursuit of excellence. Here’s to a well-deserved celebration and the successes that lie ahead in the new year!
Collaboration
From Curt Fischer, Collaboration Facilitator, Eastern Service Area North, A90
Last month in this column we discussed some recent obstacles to successful collaboration that have occurred when we have allowed decisions to be made outside the facility thereby limiting the collective strength of employees. This month, I want to address yet another challenge to successful collaboration that occurs when ego clouds the collaborative process. An individual or group that believes that they have all the answers to a particular issue often times derails collaboration and gives collaboration a bad name. As CFs, we hear this from the workforce in their comments which state that they believe Collaboration gives up Union rights or that NATCA is in bed with management. Both of these sentiments spring forth from a misapplication of the collaborative process.
In order to find a solution that satisfies as many interests as possible, the employees having that conversation need to ensure they are in communication with the workforce they represent. Plus, the workforce needs to remain engaged so that their interests are heard and understood. It is a two-way street! Whether Interest-Based Communication (IBC) or a Collaborative Workgroup (CWG), this communication needs to occur continuously. When the 6 elements of IBC or the correct CWG process are followed, the end result is the workforce’s interests were brought into the discussion and the agreed-upon option was one that satisfied as many interests as possible. The resulting decision has buy-in from the workforce because their interests were heard and they understand the “why” behind the decision.
The next New England Collaborative Skills Training will be at Boston Center on January 17-18 with 34 attendees planned. We look forward to starting 2024 with some robust collaborative discussions!
Critical Incident Stress Management
From Jennifer Dickinson, NATCA CISM Coordinator, BOS
It is hard to believe that Christmas is less than two weeks away. I am sure many of you are finishing up last-minute shopping….or just starting, and finalizing the last details on both your Christmas and New Year’s festivities. For many, this is a time of good friends, family traditions, and celebration. However, for some of us, this can be a time of heavy stress, sadness from loss or strained relationships, and difficulty.
We all have different experiences that shape how we feel about the holidays. The one thing that remains constant is the need to be kind and support one another. Unless shared, you don’t know what someone may be going through behind the scenes.
The holidays are a great time to make new memories and even include someone who may not have family or friends to spend the holidays with. I encourage everyone to do something nice for someone this holiday season. Little acts of kindness go a long way.
Please remember that the CISM team is available 24/7. We want to hear from you! You can contact the team at [email protected].
My Christmas wish for you all is a season filled with health, happiness, and wonderful memories as we go into 2024. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
“Even the smallest act of caring for another person is like a drop of water..it will make ripples throughout the entire pond.” – Bryan Matteo
OSHA
From Matt Murray, NATCA New England OSHA Rep, ZBW
Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) is the leading cause of premature death, primarily affecting people in the prime of life and with no known heart problems.
Did you know that?
You might be asking, what can you do about that? The answer is simple. Take a basic CPR and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) class. The survival rate of a person suffering a Sudden Cardiac Arrest exponentially improves when CPR is administered in the first two minutes. It continues to improve if an AED is added.
Here is the best part, NATCA and the FAA want you to be trained in how to administer CPR and how to use an AED in an emergency. They have already provided most facilities with AED devices and the FAA will also provide CPR/AED Training classes either locally or virtually.
The Fac Rep and ATM can reach out directly to the FAA PAD Program by emailing [email protected] to set up the training.
Lastly, NATCA strongly encourages members to be trained in CPR and AED. Each year, the OSHA Committee honors the facility that has the highest percentage of people who received CPR/AED Training each year. Click here to watch ZNY receive the Helping Hearts Award from CFS 2023.
If you are having issues getting this program started at your facility, reach out to me at [email protected] and I will try to assist.
Professional Standards
From Steven Schefcik, NATCA New England Professional Standards Disrict Chair, PWM
From the ProStandards (PS) standpoint, things around the region have been fairly quiet. The National Team is still moving full speed ahead with training, and have multiple classes scheduled for the beginning of the year. We are allotted 22 slots for PS committee members between all the buildings in the region, and by March/April of next year we will have 19 of the 22 slots filled!
Regionally, your local PS committee members should be giving everyone a quick refresher briefing about the program, but as always if you ever have questions please feel free to reach out to your local committee members or myself at [email protected]. All the PS committee members in our region do a fantastic job, and are always available to help with any PS issue you may have.
If you’re ever unsure whether an issue fits into the PS program, be sure to ask your local reps or myself. Safety and Professionalism are two of the most important standards in our buildings, and the PS program can be a useful tool to ensure those are kept to the highest standard.
Announcements & Information
NATCA Northwest Mountain Region has graciously opened up their 4th Annual Wellness Town Hall to all NATCA members. The town hall will be held this afternoon, Friday, December 15th at 1pm ET and will focus on mental health, with briefings from various speakers and committee representatives. We encourage all members and their families to join in.
Let’s talk Mental Health! Are you, a loved one, or a coworker struggling with mental health and wondering where you can turn? Do you want to seek counseling, but are worried about your medical?
NATCA wants you to know that you are not alone and we have resources, tools, and members available to help navigate difficult times. We will discuss mental health, substance abuse, suicide, and other stressors that we face day in and day out.
Joining our call will be Sarah Grampp, chair of NATCA’s Critical Incident Stress Management Committee (CISM), Martin Ramirez, chair of NATCA’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Sam Navarro, CISM Committee, Jamie Sanders, NATCA EAP Committee, Pam Butler, NATCA member that has had CISM deployed to her facility, Michael Napolitano, CISM Committee member, that visited Pam’s facility, and Bill Geoghagan, NATCA employee, who sought help, went through the self referral process.
Each speaker will offer education on what resources their committee offers members, or they will share their personal experiences with the committees and their processes. They will also discuss some signs to look for that may help you better understand when to reach out for help.
There will also be a Q&A session at the end of the briefings. Click here to join the conversation.
New England will be hosting a full RT-1 class in New England the week leading up to the Super Bowl, February 5-9, 2024. The class will be held at the Doubletree by Hilton Manchester Downtown in Manchester, NH, and will be open to about 40 attendees.
If you will be a new representative next year or think that being a representative may be in your future, you should attend this class! This is a unique opportunity to take RT-1 in the local area without having to travel all the way out to Las Vegas, where the class is normally held.
Sign-ups for RT-1 will be available soon on the NATCA Portal.
