(NewsNation) — A union representing thousands of federal air traffic controllers on Tuesday called on Congress to end the government shutdown.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association is the second union representing federal government workers to call on Washington lawmakers this week to pass a short-term funding bill so its workers can receive paychecks. The American Federation of Government Employees issued a similar call Monday.
“End this shutdown today,” NATCA President Nick Daniels said Tuesday during a news briefing at LaGuardia Airport. “There is no excuse that these hardworking men and women are showing up to do this job and to not ever know when they’re going to get paid again.”
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy echoed the call for an end to the shutdown, again shifting the blame to Senate Democrats. Duffy said the party struck down a bill that would pay air traffic controllers and other federal employees.
“I think we’re getting to the point of extremism,” Duffy said. “It does beg the question for me: ‘What are the Democrats fighting for?’ Let’s fight for America.”
Democratic lawmakers have held firm until Republicans commit to expanding subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Republicans have continually accused Democrats of holding the government hostage, accusing them of seeking to provide health care to people living in the U.S. illegally.
Now in its fourth week, the shutdown has caused flight disruptions at airports across the country due to a shortage of air traffic controllers.
Hundreds of thousands of federal employees — including 13,000 air traffic controllers staffed at U.S. airports — are working without pay, and Duffy has called those workers “critical infrastructure” because they ensure the safety of U.S. airspace.
On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration said flight disruptions have been reported at airports in Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Newark, New Jersey due to the shortage.