Management Report: Air Traffic Controllers Strike Case Study Analysis

This report provides an in-depth analysis of the 1981 Air Traffic Controllers Strike, focusing on the negotiation tactics and interpersonal communication failures that led to its breakdown. The report examines the perspectives of both the union (PATCO) and the U.S. Government, exploring the demands, responses, and decisions made by each party. It delves into the ethical considerations of the strike, evaluating the actions of Robert Poli and President Reagan. The analysis highlights the lack of effective communication and the use of distributive bargaining, ultimately leading to a win-lose outcome. The report suggests alternative negotiation tactics and communication strategies that could have potentially averted the strike and its consequences. The report also reviews the historical context of the strike, including the violation of the contract with the FAA and the firing of air traffic controllers. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of integrative bargaining in conflict resolution and the impact of the strike on labor relations.

Running Head: MANAGEMENT
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Management
Interpersonal Communication
(Student details :)
4/20/2019

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Executive Summary
This paper is based on understanding the significance of interpersonal communication and
conflicts negotiation tactics with the help of analysing a case study on the air controllers
strike held in 1981. While analysing the case study, the paper has used both the viewpoints of
the involved parties within the incident. In this context, involved parties include the union
PATCO and the US Govt. hence, with the help of studying the case study this paper has
evaluated best possible ways to handle such kinds of conflicts and negotiation cases. In this
way, this paper has provided many alternative ways containing interpersonal communication
tactics which could have been used for averting the negotiation breakdown of the 1981.

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Contents
Executive Summary...................................................................................................................1
Case Study Analysis: Air Traffic Controllers Strike..................................................................3
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Solution 1...................................................................................................................................4
Solution 2...................................................................................................................................5
Solution 3...................................................................................................................................6
Solution 4...................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................7
References..................................................................................................................................8

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Case Study Analysis: Air Traffic Controllers Strike
Introduction
This paper is focused on analyzing a case study of air traffic controllers’ strike held in 1981.
PATCO was a Trade Union of U.S. which started functioning from the year 1968 until their
decertification during the year 1981, as a result of an illegitimate strike which was wrecked
down through the Reagan’s government. Sources from the history suggest that during
August, 1981, the Union demanded of a better functioning condition including improved
payment as well as 32 hours’ work per week (Controllers & House V., 2015). However, from
the perspective of ethical negotiation tactics of the Government, by doing Air Strike, PATCO
dishonoured 5 U.S.C. which forbids any strike by the national government. Moreover,
Ronald Reagan considered as well as announced the PATCO strike as a risk to national safety
because strike obstructed whole operation of the air traffic system of the country hindered
numerous daily flights (McCartin, 2014).

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Solution 1
As we know that PATCO was attempted so many negotiations with the FAA for more than
11 months Poli instructed union members for going on air traffic controllers strike. Therefore,
the preliminary approach of the Poli of attempting negotiations with the FAA seems to be fair
(Azzouz & Nandi, 2013).
Undoubtedly, the union used unfair as well as unethical negotiation tactic because there could
be a number of ways to negotiate over the topic. In this way, violation of the contract with the
FAA was not the only option to achieve their professional needs. On the other hand, in
response Government has also not used right way of negotiation and interpersonal
communication as no president is thought to fire a huge number of officers just because they
used way of strike to acquire their rights and desires. In this way, the two parties could have
negotiated with communication tactics and thus come to a common conclusion. If union
could have used an ethical, legal as well as viable negotiation tactic for communicating their
demands then situation could have achieved a deal where interests of the both parties were
valued (Chaney & Martin, 2012). However, the incident of firing a huge number of
employees by the Reagan within 48 hours of the strike was also awful act by the government
side. In whole, union took the ethically as well as legally wrong step for presenting their
professional demands as before this incident, Robert Poli the Union Leader representative has
spent many months while attempting for negotiating a novel labor management contract with
the FAA hence the leader should have used some other negotiation tactic rather than going on
strike while violating the terms and conditions of the contract with the FAA.

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Solution 2
As per the reports over the air controllers strike during August, 1981, the President Ronald
Reagan fired around 11359 air traffic regulators. The air traffic controllers were on strike as
well as did not accept the order of the President Ronald Reagan. In this context, government
response during the executive act doesn’t seem fair and appropriate as it considerably
hindered the air travel for many months. Besides, the reason if the strike was feasible and
logical as all the air traffic controllers protested of critically difficult workplace condition
along with the lack of appreciation and work pressures they were facing since long. Hence,
while traffic regulators went on strike all across the region, then more than 7000 flights got
cancelled as well as Reagan called that strike illegal. In addition, Reagan announced as well
as threatened to fire the air traffic regulators who will not be returned to employment in 48
hours. Apart from this, Robert Poli was forced to pay $1000 per day as fine for doing the
strike (Den Hartog et al., 2013).
As we can see that none of the demands of the air traffic regulators were wrong and over in
nature and hence the US government could have easily handled the critical situation in some
effective way. In this way, it is apparent that US Govt. has used a wrong way to response
over the strike incident and the Govt. could have used a lot of effective management ways to
handle the situation rather than firing the employees and torturing their leader as well (Tan,
2013).
Moreover, Reagan being the president was having the right to handle such kinds of air traffic
strikes but rest actions of the president was not right from the employee’s perspective. As the
Govt. declared lifetime forbid over the rehiring of the officers on strike by the FAA which
was undoubtedly one of the cruel steps. Moreover, the responses of the US Govt. seem wrong
because the representative of PATCO Poli tried to negotiate several times for several months,
yet the result was not in favour hence the Govt. should have considered this major point. The
response was not fair and appropriate because none of the desires, requirements and interests
of the air traffic regulators was considered and hence this action made them adopt the path of
strike. Thus, it can be revealed that PATCO strike was become essential event for the air
traffic controllers in order to make their professional lives liveable (Lee & Gu, 2013).

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Solution 3
According to the historical events and news, the union leader Robert Poli who was the Union
Leader Representative of PATCO had tried to resolve the problems of air traffic controllers
for several months while hoping to negotiate over an updated labor management contract
with the FAA within the United States. In this way, post analysing the whole situation, it can
be stated that both the parties including the US Govt. and the union of PATCO were equally
responsible for this negotiation breakdown. In this context, if the demands of the workers
under PATCO has been listened carefully, then they would not have used strike being the
communication way. Moreover, for the employees of PATCO, Robert Poli wanted working
hours of 32 hour per week. Hence, as a response to the situation, the FAA did not listen and
negotiate over their demands in a way that both the parties would have satisfied (Ulmer et al.,
2013).
On the other hand, it is worth mentioning that Regan announced a life-time forbid upon the
rehiring of those strikers from the FAA which was too harsh from an employee perspective.
Contrary, declaration of the strike which is illegal can be justified to some extent from the
perspective of tortured air traffic regulators. Yet, as the air traffic controllers of FAA took
oath of not getting engaged in any kind of political act against the US government hence it
has become a clearly wrong way of negotiation and communication. The above is the reason
that a critical negotiation breakdown was occurred and hence both of the parties were equally
responsible for the breakdown (Lax & Sebenius, 2013).
However, several social analysts have found and declared the air traffic regulators faultier
because of the violation they did by declaring the strike. On the other hand, many social
analysts accuse the president Ronald Reagan for the critical domestic violence caused to air
the union and its members in 1981. In this way, both of the above parties are responsible
from diverse viewpoints and hence it is very difficult to identify any one being the reason of
the negotiation breakdown occurred in the year 1981 (Bargiela et al., 2013).

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Solution 4
After reading, discussing and analysing the whole situation, writer has understood that there
could have been many alternative procedures as well as negotiation tactics for dealing with
the critical situation from the perspective of effective interpersonal communication and
negotiation tactics. In this context, huge lack of communication as well as negotiation skills
amid the both parties has been noticed while studying the case of strike-1981. Besides, the
lacks of negotiation tactics among the two parties lead the situation to a drastic outcome.
Apart from this, a lack of effective communication was demonstrated by the incident when
the oath taken by the ATCs got failed while building employee morale as well as reducing
grievances at PATCO. As we know that effective interpersonal communication helps
employees while understanding hopes of the employment as well as builds loyalty and
commitment. Moreover, contrary to this effective communication, in-effective
communication always leads to various damaged work-place relations (Lolli, 2013). In this
context, post going through the 1981 air controllers strike situation, it can easily be stated that
a lack of efficient communication amid the two parties include PATCO and FAA has been
demonstrated which also produced one of the big labor movements within the U.S. history
(Dozier et al., 2013).
In this way, conflict resolution process could have been executed in some other effective
way, where the demands of both parties were kept alive and sustained. Therefore, few faults
in conflict resolution generated this drastic situation within the labor union history
worldwide.
Conclusion
In whole, from the perspective of alternate ways to handle the situation if focus will be given
to distributive and integrative bargaining, then it is clear that the 1981 Strike was apparently a
distributive negotiation. This is because of the reason that a distributive bargaining always
ends up in a win-lose outcome. Likewise, in distributive bargaining where one party will be
at some point of advantage win and the one lose out, the union PATCO lose out whereas the
US Govt. has successfully won the situation (McCartin, 2014).

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References
Azzouz, E. & Nandi, A., 2013. Automatic modulation recognition of communication signals.
UK: Springer Science and Business Media.
Bargiela, F., Nickerson, C. & Planken, B., 2013. What is Business Discourse? In Business
Discourse. UK: Palgrave Macmillan.
Chaney, L. & Martin, J., 2012. Intercultural business communication. UK: Prentice Hall.
Controllers, R. & House V., 2015. Reagan Starts Firing Air Traffic Controllers. [Online]
Available at: https://www.newhistorian.com/reagan-starts-firing-air-traffic-controllers/4497/
[Accessed 18 April 2019].
Den Hartog, D., Boon, C., Verburg, R. & Croon, M., 2013. HRM, communication,
satisfaction, and perceived performance a cross-level test. Journal of Management, 39(6),
pp.1637-65.
Dozier, D., Grunig, L. & Grunig, J., 2013. Manager's guide to excellence in public relations
and communication management. UK: Routledge.
Lax, D. & Sebenius, J., 2013. 3-D Negotiation: Powerful tools to change the game in your
most important deals. US: Harvard Business Press.
Lee, O. & Gu, M., 2013. The relationship between emotional intelligence and communication
skill, clinical competence & clinical practice stress in nursing students. Journal of the Korea
Academia-Industrial Cooperation Society, 14(6), pp.2749-59.
Lolli, J., 2013. Interpersonal communication skills and the young hospitality leader: Are they
prepared? International Journal of Hospitality Management, 32, pp.295-98.
McCartin, J., 2014. Reagan vs. Patco: The Strike That Busted Unions. [Online] Available at:
https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/03/opinion/reagan-vs-patco-the-strike-that-busted-
unions.html?_r=0 [Accessed 18 April 2019].
Tan, H., 2013. Effects of authoritative guidance availability and audit committee
effectiveness on auditors' judgments in an auditor-client negotiation context. The Accounting
Review, 78(3), pp.801-18.

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Ulmer, R., Sellnow, T. & Seeger, M., 2013. Effective crisis communication: Moving from
crisis to opportunity. UK: Sage PUblications.