Source: The American Prospect
by David Dayen
“The longest government shutdown in American history was stopped because of a sick-out. Specifically, in early 2019, air traffic controllers, after working for weeks without pay, started to call in sick in increasing numbers, leading to flight delays and travel snarls. Eventually, that got both parties to the table to halt the shutdown after 35 days. The air traffic controllers have recognized their power and decided to get going with things much earlier this time. Delays in Newark, Denver, Hollywood Burbank, Nashville, and many more airports have been reported, even as the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the employee union, has urged members to stop workers from calling out sick. The truth is that the air traffic controller workforce has already been thinned out to such a degree that only ‘a slight tick-up’ in sick calls is enough to ground a lot of planes.” (10/09/25)
https://prospect.org/politics/2025-10-09-shutdown-trump-republicans-air-traffic-controllers/