ATC Pay Scale

utahaviator

New Member
Found this on another forum. Let me know if it's helpful!

Here is a description of the new FAA Air Traffic Controller Pay Scale for 2008. If you like it, then nominate it for a STICKY!


The pay scale for 2008 can be found below. I suggest you print it out so that you can follow along. Make sure your printer is set to landscape.

https://employees.faa.gov/employee_s...o_locality.xls


I know the FAA designed the pay scale to be easy to read (sarcasm spoiler), but I've taken the time to help you understand it better.

On the left side of the page is the Career Level column. This column represents your progression through the training program. It has been divided into five sections described below:

AG: Initial hire pay grade. This is the pay grade that all off-the-street (OFTS) and Collegiate Training Initiative (CTI) students will be paid AFTER they graduate from the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City. Starting pay for those groups at the Academy is $8.50 an hour. Veteran Military controllers hired under the VRA program will begin this pay grade at the FAA Academy. All Academy students will receive per diem pay to help cover the cost of food and lodging while you are in Oklahoma City.

D1: This is the first pay raise. AFTER you have completed 25% of the training requirements at your duty facility, you will be promoted to this pay band. ARTCC controllers: this is after you are certified on 2-3 D-Sides in your area. Terminal controllers: Sorry...don't have an answer for you.

D2: This the second pay raise. AFTER you have completed 50% of the training requirements at your duty facility, you will be promoted to this pay band. ARTCC controllers: this is after you are certified on ALL D-Sides in your area.

D3: This is the third pay raise. AFTER you have completed 75% of the training requirements at your duty facility, you will be promoted to this pay band. ARTCC controllers: this is after you have completed radar school, and are certified on 2-3 radar positions.

CPC: This is the final pay raise you will receive when you have completed the training program.

Note: If you are an initial hire (all hiring sources) you will always be paid the minimum while in training.

At the top of the pay scale are nine columns numbered from 4 to 12. They represent the facility complexity level. Most ARTCCs are Level 10-12 facilities. When you receive an offer letter, it will disclose the facility level.

Now for an example. Jenny, a VRA hire, has been hired at Atlanta ARTCC (Level-12). On the first day of class at the FAA Academy, she will be paid an annual salary of $33,100 (not including the locality for Oklahoma City). Locality for Oklahoma City is 13.18%. Her total salary will be $37,463. Jenny successfully graduates the FAA Academy, and moves to Atlanta to begin work. On her first day at Atlanta ARTCC, she will be paid $33,100 plus the locality pay for Atlanta (17.3%). Her new total salary is $38,826. Over the course of the next 10 months, Jenny completes the first 25% of the training program and is promoted. Her new total salary is $52,052. During the next 20 months, Jenny completes the training program. Her final salary starts at $91,729 and the maximum she can make is $127,857 (the true amount will be more as locality and pay band levels increase each year). Overall, Jenny is doing pretty well.

I cannot provide examples for the Terminal environment, since I work at ZTL. I don't know what the training time frames are like at those facilities, except that they are shorter than ARTCCs. If you are hired at a Terminal facility you can expect to complete the training program in under 24 months. All facilities (ARTCCs and Terminals) have different training programs, each with its own "bottle neck" and delays. Be prepared for the unexpected.

Here is a list of the 2008 Locality Pay Rates:

Atlanta 17.30%
Boston 22.51%
Buffalo 15.37%
Chicago 23.16%
Cincinnati 17.77%
Cleveland 17.11%
Columbus 15.80%
Dallas 18.74%
Dayton 15.26%
Denver 21.03%
Detroit 22.53%
Hartford 23.97%
Houston 27.39%
Huntsville 14.23%
Indianapolis 13.51%
Los Angeles 25.26%
Miami 19.11%
Milwaukee 16.73%
Minneapolis 19.43%
New York 26.36%
Philadelphia 20.14%
Phoenix 14.74%
Pittsburgh 14.93%
Portland 18.72%
Raleigh 16.82%
Richmond 15.40%
Sacramento 20.25%
San Diego 22.00%
San Francisco 32.53%
Seattle 19.75%
Washington 20.89%

Rest of U.S. 13.18%

If you don't see the city you will be working in or near, then you are in the "Rest of U.S." group.




This next section will provide some information on pay raises and how you can reach the pay band maximum.

Every controller (except developmental trainees) are eligible to receive an annual pay raise/bonus/award based upon their performance during the year. This is called a Superior Contribution Increase (SCI). Management selects the top controllers (or their favorites) in each team since there are only a few SCI awards available each year. Not everyone can get one, it's a competitive system. The SCI comes in two steps - .06% of your base salary and .18% of your base salary. If your salary is less than the maximum you will receive a raise, but if your salary is equal to or more than the maximum you will receive a one time cash award. Another award that occurs each year is called the Organizational Success Increase (OSI). Each year the FAA outlines performance goals that need to be met by the organization as a whole. A predetermined percentage is chosen, and if the organization meets all the goals then the full award is added to increase the base pay of all FAA employees. If all the goals are not met, then the award percentage is less, and so on. I won't explain this any further since the OSI is included into the pay scale table each year.

Here's an example if your salary is less than the maximum. We'll use Jenny from the example I used before.

Jenny's annual salary is $91,729. She does very well throughout the year and earns the highest SCI award, a .16% salary raise. Her new salary for the new year is $93,196 - a $1,468 annual raise. Let's assume that the pay scale never changes and that Jenny continues to get the highest SCI award each year. Let's also assume that I don't have the time right now to continue the math to determine how long it would take her to reach the salary maximum. So I'll just guess that it'll take 8 years to reach the maximum.

Now that 8 years have passed, and Jenny is at the top of the pay band, let's see what happens when she's been awarded the highest SCI again. Let's also assume that she is still a controller - since after having won the highest SCI award consecutively for nine years she may have been selected to serve as the next FAA Administrator. Jenny's salary is $127,857. She should receive a raise in the amount of $2,045. Since she already makes the maximum in her salary band, she will receive the award as a one time cash award. No more raises for Jenny, until the pay scale increases.
 
This is what I've been trying to locate for the past month! Thank you, thank you. Am I correct in assuming (I hate using this word) if I survive OKC and head to a facility 9, my salary would be $33,100 plus the locality pay until I complete 25% training and move to D1 step?
 
This is what I've been trying to locate for the past month! Thank you, thank you. Am I correct in assuming (I hate using this word) if I survive OKC and head to a facility 9, my salary would be $33,100 plus the locality pay until I complete 25% training and move to D1 step?

You forgot:
S C R E W E D - what you get after you get checked out. Also included in that is H O S E D and constantly H A R A S S E D.

BTW - You will NEVER received an SCI while in training. You probably will not receive one once checked out as well. The FFAA has a quota system (they had one in the late '80's as well but did away with it because it caused rifts/problems/etc. IE favoritism) They are only allowed to give like 15-20% of the employees an SCI. So even if you did a great job during the year you will not get one. It was another way for the FFAA manglement to divide the controller ranks by playing favoritism. In the old days people were buddy-buddy with their stupe. and had the same one year in and year out. So the stupe would give you the bone-us (bonus) cause you were pals. The FFAA, during the Jane Garvey years, say that this was bad and did away with it, giving everyone a smaller bonus. The rational is that, as long as you didn't mate airplanes, you did a good job and deserved something. Not now. It is back to the kiss-@ss system and it is disgusting to watch what people will do for about 500-700 bucks. I told my stupe at my bi-annual review to keep it, I didn't want it if this was the way they were going to treat us. WE now as employees are supposed to, at the end of the review cycle, have a meeting with our stupe and tell him why we deserve an SCI and what we did to deserve it (I'm supposed to rate myself??? WTF, over). "I started off with I am polite, I helped a lady across the road, I shared my lunch with OX (another controller) and my dog and kids likes me. You're the supervisor, you're supposed to be supervising me, you tell my why I deserve the SCI. Oh, and if I get one, keep it." Any type of bonus I have, or will get (I doubt it now), will be split between the new hires for a party, gas money, etc. To h{ll with them.

BTW wikipedia Jane Garvey. Probably the best Administrator we ever had.
 
3 hours sleep after the mid makes me :panic: and :crazy: and also :drool:.


sticky, sticky, sticky (chant)


:yeahthat: I hear ya...I made the fatal error of going to the gym after I couldn't fall asleep last night. Got to bed FINALLY around 3am...had to be up at 6 for work. So somewhat the same boat (sleepwise anyway...)
 
The one I cant find is the one that list the diffrent levels of each facility I know my first choice was a level 7 KFWA but since I got terminal Indiana I'd like to see what the other towers are.
 
I empathize with you ATL and UA. Yesterday, my Fargo overnight flight had to return to field (MSP) due to a line of tstorms over fargo. The flight finally got into Fargo at 6z. I didn't leave work until 3:10am, after starting work at 3:15pm. I finally went to sleep shortly after 4:00am, and was woken up around 9am to management working on the Apt. next to me (hammering on the wall). I am tired, cranky, and I get to do it all over again tonight. Well, at least I'm getting good practice.
 
I empathize with you ATL and UA. Yesterday, my Fargo overnight flight had to return to field (MSP) due to a line of tstorms over fargo. The flight finally got into Fargo at 6z. I didn't leave work until 3:10am, after starting work at 3:15pm. I finally went to sleep shortly after 4:00am, and was woken up around 9am to management working on the Apt. next to me (hammering on the wall). I am tired, cranky, and I get to do it all over again tonight. Well, at least I'm getting good practice.


That's the spirit! :laff:
 
Can someone enlighten me? What are D-sides? What do you have to know,do to learn a D-side? and how many are there in a typical ARTCC?
 
Can someone enlighten me? What are D-sides? What do you have to know,do to learn a D-side? and how many are there in a typical ARTCC?
i think for the purposes of this thread "D" refers to a "developmental" controller, in an ARTCC the D-side is the one who helps organize flight progress strips and looks for potential problems, as well as some other functions. (they arent the one actually talking on the radio)
 
Can someone enlighten me? What are D-sides? What do you have to know,do to learn a D-side? and how many are there in a typical ARTCC?

A D-side at an ARTCC is a "helper" for the radar controller. He/she is a controller who takes hand-offs, coordinates with other sectors about aircraft that are entering/exiting your airspace, enter information into the HOST (FFAA main computer) about certain aircraft, etc. You and the radar controller are a team at that certain sector.
 
i think for the purposes of this thread "D" refers to a "developmental" controller, in an ARTCC the D-side is the one who helps organize flight progress strips and looks for potential problems, as well as some other functions. (they arent the one actually talking on the radio)

a D side was the non radar position at a sector your job was to make sure aircraft entered your sector seperated while the radar controller seperated the aircraft in the sector, D sides also helped with coordination checked that flight plans were correct etc, then the FFA brought in URET and now a D side is nothing more than someone who is in the way, URET killed the radar team and this was the main reason i left ZAU,if the stupid people want to jump off a cliff they can do it with out me around, and iam much happer now.
 
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