FAA and NATCA Agree to 2.8% Air Traffic Controller Pay Raise Tied to Workplace Reforms

FAA air traffic controllers will receive a 2.8 percent pay raise under a new agreement between the Trump administration and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA). U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the deal Friday and said the increase is tied to workplace reforms, as required by an act of Congress.

The reforms include a requirement that controllers "badge in" and "badge out" of facilities, the development of shift guidelines based on forecasted workload, and controller reassignments focused on where staffing needs are most severe. Local managers and union representatives will create the shift guidelines. Department of Transportation officials said the changes will improve controller quality of life, maximize coverage, improve efficiency and make better overall use of the FAA's existing workforce.

The DOT said the pay increase takes effect Oct. 18 and is retroactive to the beginning of the year.

NATCA President Nick Daniels said in a news release that the increase reflects the vital role controllers play in keeping the nation's skies safe and efficient, and that fair compensation and better working conditions are essential to sustaining a strong, experienced controller workforce. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in a statement Friday that improving how work is tracked, shifts are scheduled and personnel are allocated will let the FAA make better use of its workforce and respond more effectively to operational demands.

The issue of controller raises had at times been contentious. Last month, U.S. lawmakers pressed Bedford on why the agency had not implemented pay increases already approved by Congress.

Bedford argued that he had sole discretion to implement the raise and wanted to negotiate a broader deal that would strengthen oversight and efficiency. The agreement announced Friday pairs the raise with the reforms described above.

The structure of this settlement matters beyond the 2.8 percent figure. Compensation that Congress had already approved was released only alongside changes to how controller time is tracked, scheduled and allocated. In a workforce where coverage gaps are concentrated in particular facilities, the FAA is treating deployment flexibility as part of the price of a raise, and that framing is likely to shape how future controller contracts are negotiated.

For airlines, charter and fractional operators, and the FBOs and airports that depend on predictable air traffic control service, the practical test is whether reassignments and workload-based shift guidelines translate into steadier coverage at the facilities with the most severe staffing needs. Those guidelines are to be written by local managers and union representatives, so the detail that determines day-to-day outcomes will be settled facility by facility.

The next milestone is the pay increase taking effect on Oct. 18, followed by the first shift guidelines produced locally and the first reassignments carried out under the agreement.