A senior Republican congressman has publicly opposed former President Donald Trump's controversial proposal to dock the pay of air traffic control workers who were absent from work during the recent historic government shutdown.
Shutdown Strain and Staff Absences
The 43-day shutdown, which ran from 1 October to 12 November 2025, required air traffic controllers (ATCs) to continue working without receiving their salaries. This financial pressure forced many to seek secondary employment, with numerous reports of staff struggling to afford childcare and fuel to commute to their essential shifts.
The untenable situation led to a significant number of controllers calling in sick, which in turn caused major disruption at airports across the United States. These widespread absences prompted Trump to suggest that the pay of those who missed work should be deducted.
Republican Chairman Highlights Personal Circumstances
However, Representative Sam Graves, the Republican chairman of the powerful U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, has pushed back strongly on the idea. In an interview with KFEQ, Graves emphasised the impossible position in which workers were placed.
"The problem with something like that is you really don’t know the circumstances," Graves stated. "They may have actually been sick." He went on to describe the combination of an inherently high-stress job with the severe anxiety of not being paid.
"You also can’t fault somebody who’s trying to make a car payment and a mortgage payment," he added. "You don’t know what their personal circumstance is, and they have to go out and get another job for the time being to try to make ends meet."
Disruption, Bonuses, and a Legislative Fix
The staff shortages led to such considerable operational disruption that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was compelled to cut flight volumes at 40 of the nation's busiest airports. While Trump initially vowed to financially punish absent workers and reward those who stayed with bonuses of up to $10,000, the reality has been different.
Officials from the FAA have not indicated any plans to penalise staff. Furthermore, out of more than 10,000 workers who worked during the shutdown, only 776 are slated to receive the promised bonuses, as the agency stipulated that only controllers with perfect attendance would qualify.
In the wake of the shutdown, Congressman Graves has introduced a bipartisan bill designed to prevent a repeat of the crisis. The legislation proposes to fund ATC salaries and key FAA programmes during future funding lapses by tapping into a little-used $2.6 billion aviation insurance fund created after the 9/11 attacks.
"We all saw that the system can be vulnerable when Congress can’t get its job done," Graves said. "This bill guarantees that controllers, who have one of the most high-pressure jobs in the nation, will get paid during any future funding lapses."
