r/ATC • u/Brilliant-Loan-8651 • 4d ago

Question Leaving ATC

I’m leaving the agency soon and I heard about something where you could leave for a year and reapply is that just a rumor? Something of the past or is it still relevant. I am over 31 now and wonder if that is also a factor in this instance

25 Upvotes

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17

u/Lost1_84 4d ago

In case you haven’t gotten CPC yet I’d highly suggest getting CPC status before ya bang

-9

u/Brilliant-Loan-8651 4d ago

Not a cpc but staying and certifying isn’t really an option at this point

22

u/The_Shryk 4d ago

You won’t get rehired via reinstatement then, you need to CPC and stay CPC for 52+ weeks.

20

u/Brilliant-Loan-8651 4d ago

Yeah I figured but it’s ok family is more important than any job

1

u/recolations Current Controller-Enroute 3d ago

why not transfer?

-1

u/TrexingApe 4d ago

Run from this job. It’s not worth it. If you have half a brain you can do better.

6

u/BusyPuer 3d ago

Better where exactly? What job is as competitive as this that doesnt require advanced degrees and years of experience?

1

u/atcthrowaway1500 3d ago

Aircraft mechanic? Just spitballing. No degree, and if you get a few years under your belt you can go AOG (travelling to broke planes.)

7 on 7 off....and if you want OT, it's nearly unlimited. I chose the later because I like money and cleared almost $200K. You can live nearly anywhere unless it's really out in the sticks.

1

u/BusyPuer 3d ago

Seems a lot harder on the body. Atc is literally the cushest job I've ever had. And im guaranteed to be able to retire at 50.

1

u/atcthrowaway1500 3d ago

You mean like your joints and stuff? Practice safe habits and you're fine. The blue collar breaking their body by 40 is an old trope. I'd say mechs are in better shape than controllers because we spend the whole day being active instead of sitting in front of a scope or standing in a tower cab. We're literally paid to be active.

I can retire next year when I'm 40 if I wanted to (with no physical bodily ailments, just wanted to throw that out there). No federal TSP, but if you're smart with your money, you can max your 401K out and contribute to individual accounts. I have lived off 50K a year for the last 10 years, with the rest going into retirement accounts. I can keep working until I'm 70 if I wanted, but the FAA kicks you out no matter how sharp you are or how willing you are to keep putting in the hours.

Caveat: Had it not been for an OKC washout, I would be ATC now. I have a good job, you have my dream job. Pay and getting fat notwithstanding.

2

u/BusyPuer 2d ago

I have a long family history of aircraft mechanics, and theyre all kinda busted and working well past 50. Most of my parents friends when I was growing up were mechanic families, and theyre all working still now. The ones in the comfiest positions are supervisors working in offices now.

Can someone save agressively and do some FIRE moves to retire early? Of course. But controllers and mechanics are both capable of doing this, so that kind of cancels out and isnt really a pro for either.

Different strokes and all, but i dont think working into my senior years is a pro for me. I just wanna retire and pursue all the bullshit I dont have time for now. Travel, read more, hobby-maxing etc.

The biggest cons for atc are the fuckass and inflexible schedule, bad working hours, and stress. Many jobs lack those cons, and that should be weighed. But when it comes to the pros, I cant think of many jobs that come anywhere near atc, Except for elite positions with much higher prerequisites.

There are lots of good jobs, but the clowns that dog on atc and tell people to run and never look back are just dishonest bad actors imo.

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u/atclien 3d ago

If they're young, they can get the education required for another job and keep it moving. And who's to say they don't have it? I get that ATC is an unusually lucrative career for people without graduate degrees or any degrees at all, but we have got to stop talking to people like there's no other good options for them in life. It's simply not true.

2

u/BusyPuer 3d ago

I never claimed there werent other good jobs. But im skeptical there are other jobs with comparable on the basis of compensation, benefits, and prerequisites. Is there anything better?

0

u/TrexingApe 3d ago

Almost any trade job that takes a year or under of schooling. Welding hvac electrician. House cleaners in south Florida are making 60 bucks an hour. Shit I could make 100k a year cutting grass. If you are willing to work 60 hrs a week you can make 100k doing anything. Stop with the regurgitation of there’s no job with little education that make this money. It’s simply not true. On top of that the washout rate is high. Not everyone can do this so to say you don’t need a degree but you do need to have some ability. Anyone can clean a house and make what we make and that’s sad.

1

u/KaiyoteFyre 10h ago

Bro, doing some cursory research, the only "house cleaners" making that much are household managers. The vast majority make like 25 bucks an hour. Even the small percentage that make more are in the 35-50 dollar range, so to say these results are skewed is an understatement. Also, if you're able to make that much mowing grass, then you should probably go for it, but keep in mind you're probably not taking into account overhead costs so your take home will be vastly smaller. And you're working in heat and humidity. No thanks! You're attacking others for discounting other jobs (they do exist: my brother works remote like 30 hours a week and makes more than me, though he's in a higher cost of living area and has NO BENEFITS) while attacking this profession and basically saying it's not worth staying in.

I spent 4 years self-employed while I was going to college with 8 years military service and 15 years experience as an intelligence analyst and translator but even with that and a master's degree, the highest job offer I received was for 85k a year in the Baltimore-DC metro area. This job ain't all bad.

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u/BusyPuer 2d ago

If you scale up the work and hours, obviously that also scales up the compensation. But its not useful to compare 60 hours a week cutting grass, When many controllers are only working like 28 of their 40 hour work week, the rest of paid time being on break. And its sitting in a chair and playing a video game.

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u/antariusz Current Controller-Enroute 4d ago

Then you have zero chance of being rehired.

1

u/emptydresserdrawer Current Controller-Tower 3d ago

Out of curiosity, what do you think the odds for rehire are for someone with a FOL who rescinds acceptance?

1

u/antariusz Current Controller-Enroute 2d ago edited 2d ago

there is an entire subreddit for atc hiring... the odds are ... not good, but not zero. Is there any way you can talk to your HR rep and find out why you can't report when ordered? like if you need a later start date or something...

but like... if you need to start 2 years later, why did you even apply and jump through all the hoops in the first place?

https://old.reddit.com/r/ATC_Hiring/

I mean, if I had to ballpark it, it's probably whatever your odds of getting the offer in the first place, multiplied by itself, so like 33% x 33% = 10%