Preview

Why Is It Ethical To Avoid Air Traffic Controllers To Strike?

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
863 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Why Is It Ethical To Avoid Air Traffic Controllers To Strike?
Thirty-six years ago, on August 3, 1981, more than 12,000 members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) walked out, releasing multiple events that has since redefined labor unions. In rejoinder to the walkout, President Ronald Reagan delivered one of the crucial statements of his term. He said the striking air-traffic controllers were in desecration of the law; if they did not report to work within 48 hours, they would be fired. Long after Reagan’s presidency, tensions have stayed high between the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the union that eventually emerged to replace PATCO, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. NATCO and the FAA cannot agree on a new contract, so the FAA plans to impose its own contract, which includes major wage concessions. Was it ethically acceptable for the air traffic controllers to strike? Was it ethically …show more content…
Air traffic has amplified 20% since 1978, while the number of regulators and the level of regulator fortification gear has persisted equally. When traffic heaps up at an airport, a controller tower manager will often request that the controllers “get more tin [planes] on the ground” and then turn his back. The silent command is that the workers are theoretically to interrupt federal security guidelines by permitting planes to land too close together. If this fallouts in an accident, it is the workers, not the managers, who are held accountable (“The Economics of the Air Controllers’ Strike”).
It was ethically adequate for Reagan to fire the striking air traffic controllers. The dismissal of the workers was ethical because the workers new what the job was and they were well paid, but they started a strike anyways. The PATCO also denied the contract of cooperation by the FAA and went ahead to strike. Firing them was ethically suitable because they failed to notice to the presidents' stipulation of 48 hours of returning to

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Fbo Case

    • 1239 Words
    • 5 Pages

    This case addresses the problems in operating procedures and the difficulties of taking union relations into account in the modification of operating procedures. In particular, the case demonstrates the difference between operations planning and control. Normal fueling operations required 23 union employees. During a recent strike, when the FBO was negotiating the employment contract with these union employees, non-union managers performed refueling tasks. Fourteen managers handled refueling operations working 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week. While FBO would not expect union employees to work 12 hour shifts, or work 7 days a week, they do see evidence from this experience that refueling operations could be managed more efficiently.…

    • 1239 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The strike as a weapon, which PATCO attempted to use against the FAA, became a disaster for labor in 1981. 12,000 striking employees of the FAA were fired by President Ronald Reagan and replaced. The success of breaking the strike by air traffic controllers sent a message to employers and employees everywhere; this was the beginning of the end for organized labor. PATCO existed from 1968-1981 when it was decertified as a union. The strike and the defeat are called one of the most important events in the 20th century’s labor history.…

    • 980 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    On August 3, 1981, nearly 13,000 of the 17,500 members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) staged a walk out and strike. There were four main reasons the union members of PATCO decided to go on strike. First, to address the concerns by members who felt that their work was seriously undervalued and under-rewarded. The second reason was that the Federal Aviation Administration had neglected serious deficiencies in staffing and hardware reliability. Thirdly, their work week was unreasonably long, especially when compared to controllers overseas. The fourth reason for the strike was the FAA’s (FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION) approach to management-union relations and the safety of the system.…

    • 1580 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ethics and Amtrak

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Finally, my recommendation for this case is simple. Figure out what went wrong and what went right. Correct all the wrongs and make sure the corrections stay in place. They also need to determine some type of checks and balances for these new procedures. I understand accidents happen, but, Amtrak needs to take every precaution to ensure this does not happen again. I feel if the current managers and supervisors had a stronger sense of morals…

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Patco Strike

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Professional Air Traffic Controller Organization was originated in 1968 with support of attorney and pilot F. Lee Bailey. The details regarding the history, the union, and the procedures during the strike will be discussed. Accordingly, I will briefly review aspects including, but not limiting, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).…

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It was only a few people who work for higher up government companies that were brave enough and know what they are doing as a company is wrong and they cannot stand for it any…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The purpose of this paper is to present, discuss, and examine the topic of ethical and social responsibility. It will discuss Southwest Airlines ' failure to comply with the Federal Aviation Administration 's rules on inspecting aircraft and what violations occurred. On March 6, 2008, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors submitted documents to the United States Congress, alleging that Southwest allowed 117 of its aircraft to fly carrying passengers despite the fact that the planes were "not airworthy" according to air safety investigators. In some cases, the planes were allowed to fly for up to 30 months after the inspection deadlines had passed, rendering them unfit to fly. Records indicate that thousands of passengers were flown on aircraft deemed unsafe by federal standards. Clearly, this is an issue tied to social responsibility and ethics at the highest level, ignoring the safety inspections put people 's lives in jeopardy.…

    • 2277 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    References: Carrell, Michale R. (2013). Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.…

    • 1103 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Wall Street Journal article (Sept. 24 2012) notes how “American Airlines continued to rack up high numbers of flight delays and cancellations, blaming a dispute with its pilots union. The union, meanwhile, denied that pilots disrupted flights unnecessarily."…

    • 256 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Increasing worker’s rights is a principle that unions embrace. Workers who feel there is equal treatment and fair compensation, are generally more productive. With all the generous benefits unions provide for their employees, who is incurring the hefty costs? When the Chicago Teacher’s Union (CTU) went on strike in September 2012, teachers asserted a larger pay increase. Among other grievances, the CTU was negotiating for a 17 percent increase over four years. When negotiations failed with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel, the teacher’s union decided the only course of action was to strike. That strike caused Chicago’s public schools to close down, leaving 350,000 kids out of school and many parents wondering how soon a compromise…

    • 4380 Words
    • 18 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Business was thriving, the economy was growing, and life as a whole was improving. However, there was a growing minority of workingmen whose long, difficult hours of toil were being taken advantage of by greedy, selfish employers. These poor men and their malnourished, destitute families compiled the backbone of the thriving economy. Without them, production as a whole would have been at a standstill and the growing quality of life for Americans would have been dampened. Yet these hard-working people received no recognition. On the contrary, they were sorely mistreated by their employers. Threateningly, this problem was growing vaster, until finally workers began to take a stand. Did they make any impact? Did the movement last? Throughout the decades, labor unions have shaped the state of the American economy and the value of the common…

    • 1000 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ups Strike

    • 286 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The 1997 Teamster strike against UPS was not simply a victory, but a smashing victory for the US working class and therefore offers many valuable lessons for today’s labor militants, both with respect to the strategic orientation and the day-to-day tactics. UPS is a “Fortune 500” company, meaning it is one of the most profitable in the nation, boasting of a $1.15 billion profit margin prior to the strike. In 1992, the workforce was evenly divided between full-time and part-time workers, but by 1996, part-timers had increased to 61 percent and were only paid between $8 and $9 per hour.…

    • 286 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    To understand the worth of today’s unions, we must first understand the history and purpose of these organizations. Simply put, a union is an organization of employees formed to bargain with the employer. There are many types of unions. For instance, a craft union is one whose members do one type of work, often using specialized skills and training. An industrial union is one that includes many persons working in the same industry or company, regardless of jobs held. A federation is a group of autonomous national and international unions (Mathis 529). The main purpose of all these organizations is to secure benefits and rights in the workplace. The history of unions in the United States dates back before the civil war, but has matured within the last 120 years. Many early unions were premature and short-lived, such as the National Labor Union, which was the first federation of U.S. unions. In the past, some unions used violence to promote the cause of unskilled labors such as the Industrial Workers of the World. In today’s society, labor unions are generally more civil and use strikes and other peaceful demonstrations to negotiate with employers. However, today’s union numbers are steadily declining and workers seem less interested in joining. While labor unions in the past have proved to be an effective way to bargain with employers and maintain employee satisfaction, today’s unions seem to be challenged by a number of different sources. These challenges aid in the decay of unions and the leverage they once had. This is why, in today’s world, U.S. unions are undeniably obsolete.…

    • 1306 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    Nursing Labor Movement

    • 2256 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Labor unions have had a long history of using their most powerful weapon, strikes, to fight their battles. Even today, with the diminishing numbers of union members, strikes appear in the news sporadically. The most common reason for organized labor to walk off the job and strike are wage-related issues. (Labor, 2007)…

    • 2256 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Labor Unions

    • 1017 Words
    • 5 Pages

    During previous years, labor unions were used by industry workers as a way to make their voices heard and to push for change regarding unfair treatment. To some, these unions were seen as a form of threat but to others it was a way to bring the workforce together and make it beneficial to not one or a few, but to all. Labor unions have become irrelevant in the United States today. They were an important and fundamental part of the history of United States commerce and the country’s growth into an economic powerhouse (Jacob Silverman. How Labor Unions Work). But, as time has progressed and the economy and society have greatly advanced, there is a less need for labor unions. In addition to their irrelevancy, unions are unbeneficial to the United States commerce. To begin with, unions were formed initially for the common good and as a form of protection, but now they abuse their power to the detriment of its members. More importantly, they create a competition between the workers’ standard of living and the competitive strength of the employer. Furthermore, they decrease the amount of jobs available in the economy.…

    • 1017 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays