Union questions feasibility of, and intention for, relocating FAA headquarters employees

Updated at 9:00 a.m. ET Aug. 28 

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy informed employees on Tuesday that Federal Aviation Administration headquarters staff, who are currently spread out among six locations in the Washington, D.C., area, will be relocated to the department’s building in the southeast part of the city. 

Union officials, however, are concerned about the plan’s reasonableness and said that it’s raising red flags for the agency’s workforce. 

“For decades, the FAA has been housed under a patchwork of federal buildings separate from the rest of the Department of Transportation,” Duffy wrote in a memo obtained by Government Executive. “Over the years, this dislocation has created unnecessary complexities between the department and the agency. This distance has made responsiveness, accountability and transparency a challenge.”

Duffy said that the consolidation would happen “gradually,” but that timelines would be shared “in the coming weeks.” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford wrote in a follow-up email to staff, obtained by Government Executive, that the timing for each office’s relocation would “soon be finalized.” 

“We will work more effectively when we’re together, rather than spread across six different office locations,” he wrote in the Tuesday message. “This consolidation will reduce costs, enable more in-person collaboration and ultimately strengthen our safety culture.”

Bedford also promised to “continue to collaborate closely with our union partners throughout this process.” 

However Dan Ronneberg — the president of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees local 1653, which represents FAA headquarters employees — said that the union was not given advance notice of the relocation. 

“I'm not sure what continued collaboration looks like because I haven't seen any collaboration yet,” he said. 

Due to the lack of communication, the union has filed complaints with the Federal Labor Relations Authority. 

“We have a contract, and when the agency changes working conditions they're supposed to inform us, and then we're supposed to be able to ask questions, get some answers and then bargain on things that might have adverse impact to employees,” Ronneberg said. “None of that has happened.” 

The union estimated that about 5,000 employees will be impacted by the relocation order. Ronneberg questioned how all of those workers are supposed to fit into DOT headquarters, which he said is “mostly full already.” 

“Where all of those people are going to go, I don't know, unless they put them in the hallways or stack them up in the atrium or whatever,” he said. 

FAA’s move is part of a broader departmental initiative announced in Tuesday’s memo called 1DoT to “streamline processes, consolidate administrative functions and modernize infrastructure to better serve the American public.” 

Ronneberg is concerned that the rhetoric associated with 1DoT means there will be reductions in force. 

Duffy said in a department town hall on May 2 that there would be RIFs at the end of that month and that the number of impacted employees would depend on how many workers participated in the deferred resignation program. Those RIFs were blocked by an injunction; however, that order was overturned by the Supreme Court in July. 

DOT officials have not said if they will still pursue RIFs. Some agencies have canceled their layoff plans due to the number of their employees who took separation incentives.

Government Executive reached out to FAA to ask about the purported lack of communication with union officials, space concerns in DOT headquarters and if layoffs were planned. The agency directed questions to DOT. A DOT spokesperson said that unions were "properly notified" about the changes but did not otherwise provide any additional new information.  

Ronneberg said that the FAA has been left with staffing gaps due to the number of employees who left government service under DRP. He also said that the departures are hurting morale. 

“It really hurts my heart to see really dedicated and professional people who've given their entire life to public service just walk away and walk away in a way that isn't reflective of their long service,” he said. “A few years ago, we would have a retirement lunch for people, and everybody would sign a card, and all of those things. Now people are just sort of disappeared, and it's very demoralizing.”

This story has been updated with a statement from DOT.