A moon glows over the airport traffic control tower at Waterbury-Oxford Airport in this file photo. The airport is one of three in the state to phase in private employees. Republican-American Archive photo
The Connecticut Airport Authority has opted for a hybrid arrangement in which an airport operations company will eventually supply employees for the Waterbury-Oxford, Groton-New London and Hartford-Brainard airports.
“Existing staff will all stay in place, and we are going to look to negotiate an agreement with AvPORTS that they will simply supply us with employees, as our employees attrite out,” CAA Executive Director Kevin Dillon explained on Monday afternoon.
The CAA board of directors voted in favor of the arrangement at its Monday meeting. Dillon said the executive session vote was seven in favor, two against and one abstention.
Hartford Business Journal first reported on Monday morning that CAA was considering outsourcing operations of three general aviation airports.
The negotiations came about because of operating deficits for the general aviation airports that CAA operates. There are five general aviation airports but the agreement with AvPORTS does not affect the other two, Windham and Danielson, because CAA does not employ day-to-day workers at those airports.
“We’re only talking about bringing in a private company to supply day-to-day labor,” Dillon said, citing snow removal and grass cutting. “The Connecticut Airport Authority would still be responsible for business development and capital development and setting policy.”
CAA took over the assets and liabilities of Bradley International Airport and the general aviation airports, previously operated by the Connecticut Department of Transportation, on July 1, 2013.
Last year, the state withdrew its subsidy for operating expenses of the general aviation airports, and now there is a deficit of about $3 million, Dillon said.
The savings in switching to a private-sector company would be realized in benefits, particularly retirement.
“You’d start to accrue savings as you would replace employees, but that’s difficult to say exactly how fast you realize those savings,” Dillon said, “but for each person that is replaced by an AvPORTS person, there is significant savings.”
Dillon said that across Groton-New London, Hartford-Brainard and Waterbury-Oxford airports, there are 16 budgeted full-time positions, but only 11 are currently filled and two are in the hiring process.
The majority of employees are represented under CEUI SEIU Local 511.
“We’re in support of public services, and there’s certain things like general aviation airports that serve the public that we think should be served by public service workers,” union President Ron McLellan said, prior to the board meeting.
He noted that if privatization was approved, the union would be involved with every step of the implementation process. McLellan could not be reached for comment after the vote.
AvPORTS could also not be reached for comment on Monday.
The airports for which AvPORTS provides services include Tweed-New Haven Regional, Albany International, Newark Liberty International and Westchester County. It has managed five general aviation airports in Rhode Island since 2011.
