The reform of the European ATM will imply changes in working conditions for font end workers such as ATSEP’s.
Therefor the European Commission has established sectoral dialogue committees by a decision of 20 May 1998 (98/500/EEC) , promoting the Dialogue between the social partners at European level.
On 20 December 2010, the European Commission has decided to create a specific expert group on the social dimension of the Single European Sky. This group will be consulted on all Commission proposals in the field of the Single European Sky having a significant social impact (Decision of 20 December 2010 C/2010/9016 ).
Within Europe there are 6 key players in social dialogue
European ANSP’s are represented by CANSO (Europe).
2 European trade unions, ATCEUC and ETF, represent ATM staff, whereas 3 International Federations represent their specific staff, IFATSEA (ATSEP), IFATCA (ATCO) and IFAIMA (AIM staff).
All together they form the Professional Staff Organisation (PSO’s)
EGHD
In 2017, an Expert Group on Human Dimension (EGHD) was created by the EC, there tasks shall be to advise the Commission with respect to the implementation and development of the Single European Sky regarding all measures relating to human factors The EGHD consist of trade unions, CANSO and International Federations, while in the ASPReT, only ATCEUC and ETF are representative
More details on the EGHD can be found on the Register of Commission Experts Group.
IFATSEA has great contribution all these years, along with the other PSOs, in the works of this group. Our role in this group is vital as we are considering all crucial matters, on the human dimension aspect, that will influence ATSEP.
The social impact of regulation
Assessing the social impact of new regulatory requirements developed by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is also critical. A few years back the ATM social partners, European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) and Air Traffic Controllers European Union Coordination (ATCEUC) created a body called the ATM (social) Partners Regulatory Task Force (ASPReT), a group of experts focussing on supporting the implementation of EASA regulation. ASPReT sits under the ATM working group of the European Civil Aviation Social Dialogue Sectoral Committee, the official body for European Social Dialogue run by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Employment (DG EMPL).
Within this project, this task force has been working successfully with EASA on the social aspects of regulatory impact assessments in the ATM sector.
Further, ATSEP are represented at various European levels as well, such as Eurocontrol (EASC*), ICB and FAB, either as observer, either as representative.
*EASC (European ATM Staff Representatives Conference), is the discussion platform with Eurocontrol DG and the Senior Managers.