Edward Wytkind, President of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), offered the following statement regarding the possible shut down of the Federal Aviation Administration on Friday, July 22:
“Here we go again. House Republican Leaders are playing political games at the expense of vital services and thousands of good jobs – only this time they are blocking basic funding for federal aviation programs that expire tomorrow.
“Unfortunately in this game there are no winners. Republican leaders are holding hostage a simple funding extension of vital air safety programs, forcing furloughs on 4,000 FAA employees, jeopardizing thousands of construction jobs as airport projects are at risk, and even sticking it to rural America by threatening their air service.
“Worst of all, Republican leaders are doing the bidding of a few airline CEOs who refuse to allow this bill to move forward unless it eviscerates fair union election rules. No wonder the public is growing weary of the Majority Leaders in the House and their tactics.
“We will be urging our members nationwide to demand that the House Majority Leaders stand down in this deliberate attempt to use good jobs and vital FAA programs as ransom for their poorly veiled attempt to weaken workers’ rights.
“We applaud President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Rockefeller for rejecting these bully tactics and demanding completion of an FAA extension before several thousand American workers are out of a job and vital aviation programs are idled.”
###
The Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, represents 32 member unions in the aviation, rail, transit, trucking, highway, longshore, maritime and related industries. For more information, visit www.ttd.org.