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PaperclipPerfector  10mo ago (text post)   26432 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of January 15, 2024

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Relatedly, the FAA is currently defending a class action lawsuit (https://www.azlaw.com/brigida-v-faa/) by prospective air traffic controllers whose aptitude test scores were purged and applications summarily denied because they failed a "biographical questionnaire" that gave more points to applicants who had recently been unemployed than applicants with relevant aviation experience. All because the incoming cohort was deemed insufficiently racially diverse.

The claim basically is the FAA went out looking for proxies for African-American race, included those in the biographical questionnaire, and then purged candidates based on not meeting those proxies. Both disparate treatment and disparate effect. I'm sure the way the courts twist themselves and the law into pretzels to argue that no, it's really OK to discriminate against white people or how this isn't really discrimination against white people will be interesting, but I would not expect any relief. (This particular practice was later ended by an act of Congress)

While black Americans have a higher unemployment rate than white ones, do prospective black air traffic controllers have particularly high unemployment rates?

Air trafffic controllers are generally having a hell of a time. But my knowledge is mostly limited to COVID-era hiring freezes, and this lawsuit was refers to actions taken ten years earlier.

These are prospective air traffic controllers- applicants to the government’s training program- so most of the relevant job experience is ‘being a pilot, but not going to become an airline pilot for whatever reason’, and this is probably a very white and male group.

The guy I’m thinking of had significant training. I never asked if it was the FAA course or some sort of pre-admit credential treadmill. Either way, he wasn’t a pilot. He was in the queue for assignment to an airport when COVID hit and the government just…stopped advancing the line. Hope y’all didn’t need a salary any time soon! After a couple months of that, he shrugged and went into marketing.

I think so- prospective white air traffic controllers are mostly pilots of small craft(so relevant experience), whereas prospective black air traffic controllers are probably a lot more likely to go through aviation school.

I don't know, but I bet the FAA does. They also asked about things like number of drama classes and high school sports the applicants were involved in.

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