SPOKANE, Wash. — Unpaid air traffic controllers and furloughed aviation safety professionals are spoke out about the effects of the government shutdown on their jobs at the Spokane International Airport on Tuesday.
Local members of National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) handed out informational leaflets on Tuesday. Participating air traffic controllers and other safety professionals explained to travlers “how the government shutdown is detrimental to the safety and efficiency of the National Airspace system,” according to a press release.
Leafleting began on Jan. 14 at dozens of airports across the United States.
The leaflets detail how the shutdown leads to furloughed aviation safety professionals and air traffic controllers working without a paycheck, according to the release. The pamphlets also cite concerns about safety moving forward with less people on the job and cutbacks to training and safety procedures. Members also explained how the shutdown has worsened what they call a “controller staffing crisis” that has existed since a previous government shutdown in 2013.
"It's a already stressful job, it's added a level stress that's really to us unnecessary," said Mike Cashion, an air traffic controller at the Spokane tower. "For us thinking about how we are going to pay a mortgage, how are we going to keep the lights on, how we are going to feed our families, that dynamic is a very frustrating dynamic for a lot of families."
The government shutdown is now entering day 32.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is trying to muscle through the 1,300-page spending measure, which includes $5.7 billion to fund Trump's proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, the sticking point in the standoff between the president and the Democrats.
Meanwhile, another missed paycheck looms for hundreds of thousands of federal workers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.