Section 5. Watch Coverage-Flight Service
Stations
2-5-1. BASIC WATCH SCHEDULES
a. Facility
air traffic managers are responsible for preparing watch
schedules for their facilities. These schedules must take into
account normal traffic flow thereby permitting the posting of a
continuing rotational schedule for an indefinite period of time.
Facility management is responsible for appropriate consultation
with local unions.
b. Facility
air traffic managers must, to the maximum extent possible,
establish overlapping shifts thereby providing an opportunity
for personnel to accomplish a majority of briefings without need
for overtime assignment.
c. Facility
air traffic managers must ensure that air traffic control
specialists (ATCS) assigned to a position of operation:
1. Do
not work more than 6 consecutive days.
2. Do
not work more than a 10-hour day.
3. Have
an off-duty period of at least 8 hours between watches.
2-5-2. DESIGNATING WATCH
SUPERVISION COVERAGE
a. Efficient
air traffic services require supervision of each watch regardless
of the number of people assigned.
b. At
facilities where a specialist stands a watch alone, responsibility
for the overall operation of the facility during the watch becomes
a part of his/her duties.
c. When
two or more specialists are on duty and no supervisory personnel
are available (see Note), one specialist who is fully qualified
and rated in the assigned operational area must be designated by
the facility air traffic manager as CIC for that watch.
Specialists so designated may be required to perform specialist
duties in addition to those associated with watch supervision. The
CIC designation must be rotated among qualified specialists.
Persons so designated perform the full range of duties associated
with watch supervision. Watch supervision by itself does not
justify a higher grade; i.e., the CIC does not perform supervisory
duties, such as:
1. Evaluating
employee performance.
2. Recommending
selections, promotions, awards, disciplinary actions, and
separations.
3. Explaining
and gaining support of employees for management policies and
goals.
4. Counseling
employees on their performance ratings.
5. Monitoring
presidential aircraft movement.
NOTE-
A supervisor is considered available for watch supervision when
he/she is physically present in the operational area and is able
to perform the primary duties of the supervisory function. If the
supervisor leaves the operational area, or is engaged in an
activity which may interfere with or preclude the performance of
watch supervision duties, then a CIC must be designated.
2-5-3. AREA
SUPERVISION
OSs primary
function is the supervision of their area and assistance to
specialists. It is particularly important that supervisors
carefully monitor current and anticipated sector activity to
ensure that available controller staffing is deployed at optimal
efficiency. Managers/supervisors must be responsible for managing
the operational environment with a goal toward eliminating
distractions in the operational environment. Managers must, to the
extent practicable, avoid scheduling supervisors for
nonoperational duties during periods of known heavy traffic.
2-5-4. RELIEF PERIODS
a. Facility
air traffic managers must use all available qualified personnel to
provide relief periods. First priority should be given to
providing a reasonable amount of time away from the position of
operation for meals. Additionally, time for such things as
briefings and training should be made by rotating work assignments
among qualified employees.
b. Supervisors
in charge are responsible for knowing the whereabouts of employees
to ensure their operational availability. Supervisors are also
responsible for ensuring that relief periods are applied in such a
manner as to maximize the usage of personnel and to promote the
efficiency of the agency.
c. Relief period, i.e., break, is
defined by the Comptroller General as being a “brief” rest period
that may be assigned by the agency. While no specific timeframe is
placed on the duration of relief periods, supervisors and managers
will be held accountable to ensure that breaks are of a reasonable
duration.
d. Supervisors
must not condone or permit individuals to sleep while on duty. Any
such instance must be handled in accordance with Human Resource
Policy Manual (HRPM), Standards of Conduct.
2-5-5. OVERTIME DUTY
Facility
air traffic managers must ensure that overtime duty is equitably
distributed among all eligible employees who desire it. Retain
overtime duty records for 12 months.
2-5-6. HOLIDAY STAFFING
a. Facility
air traffic managers must ensure that the scheduled staffing is
adjusted on holidays to a level consistent with the anticipated
workload. Application of this policy is not intended to result in
a standardized holiday staffing schedule for all holidays. Holiday
staffing schedules may vary for individual holidays since the
traffic in a particular area cannot always be expected to be the
same for each holiday.
b. Prior
to establishing work schedules for a Federal holiday, facility air
traffic managers must:
1. Consider
the previous year's traffic statistics for each holiday.
2. Check,
as appropriate, with local sources (Air National Guard, USN, USAF
Reserves, local flying schools, fixed base operators, etc.) for
information concerning anticipated activity.
2-5-7. CONSOLIDATING POSITIONS
Assign
personnel to positions as required by activity, equipment, and
facility function. Positions may be consolidated in consideration
of activity and the qualifications of the personnel involved.
2-5-8. SUPERVISORS HOURS OF DUTY
Hours of
duty of facility air traffic managers and administrative staffs
should conform with the duty hours of their respectice Service
Area office.
2-5-9. FACILITY
COMPLEMENTS
Facility
air traffic managers will be currently informed by the Service
Area office of their authorized facility personnel complements.
The authorized complement will always be the end-of-year
employment ceiling authorization. Circumstances may result in the
establishment of a complement different from that provided in
workload formulas.
2-5-10. CONTROLLER-IN-CHARGE
(CIC) TRAINING
a. Prior
to being designated as CIC, specialists must have been
facility/area rated/certified for 6 months, except as provided
in paragraph
2-6-3c. The specialist must also have completed an
agency-approved and established CIC training course for the
assigned option (that is, En Route CIC, Course 55072; National
Flight Service CIC, Course 55025; or Terminal CIC, Course
55073). The Director of Flight Services Operations may issue a
facility waiver for the 6 months criteria where a more immediate
assignment is indicated. Upon receipt of a waiver from the
Director of Flight Services Operations the facility manager can
then issue individual waivers to the 6 months requirement on a
case-by-case basis. Waivers to facilities will be for 1 year
with renewals based on the result of a yearly evaluation by the
region.
NOTE-
In facilities that use CICs to provide midwatch coverage, all
facility/area rated/certified specialists that provide such
coverage must complete an agency-approved and established CIC
training course for the assigned option as described above,
within 30 days of final certification/rating.
b. Specialists
that have completed the CIC course, who have performed CIC
duties, and who subsequently transfer to another facility must
be required to complete those portions of the course that are
specific to the new facility before assuming CIC duties, except
as provided in paragraph
2-6-3. They must not be required to fulfill the 6 months
experience requirement at the new facility.
c. Upon completion of
the CIC course, record an entry noting this in the specialist's
Training and Proficiency Record, FAA Form 3120-1, section 3, or
TRAX, Automated Training Record.
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