Air traffic controllers are not showing up for work during this government shutdown and it is causing more and more problems for air travel. Solution? Pay them a bonus for showing up for work, something like a $100 per day, perhaps more.

Look at it from their perspective. Everyone knows they are going to get back pay once this shutdown ends. Everyone. Whether you are at work or not you will be paid the same.

So what incentive is there for these controllers to show up to a tough job that is getting tougher by the day? Are they saps for doing so while their co-workers are sleeping in, perhaps fishing or hunting, partying every night, etc.? Who is the stupid one and who isn’t?

Yeah, I’ve heard it all before about pride in the job, etc. but the reality is this can really chafe as you put up with untold nonsense while more and more people’s lives are placed in your understaffed hands. The way it is set up, only those who actually show up for work are the fools.

How to solve this? By that great motivator: cold, hard cash. Commit to a bonus program -- ideally paid now, though they can be paid later when the government shutdown ends -- and you can stop and maybe even reverse this bleeding. 

I’ve helped reorganize many businesses across the country. Sometimes these types of situations confront you. 

How do you get folks to show up for work when they know in 30 days they will be out of work? Pay them a not insignificant bonus for doing so. It won’t be 100% effective but it will greatly reduce the problems.

The opposite of this is also true. That’s why many restaurants give no notice of their coming closure and instead just post a sign on the door when they close. Employees are rightly annoyed, but let’s look at what happens if they give 30 days notice of closure. Half your employees won’t show up the next day -- they are out trying to find a new job before their co-workers do the same, as they are often applying for the same jobs. Remember this dynamic, as it is true across all industries.

You won’t know which half won’t show up. Is it all the cooks? Wait staff? Who? How can you operate under those circumstances? And for those loyal employees who do show up, their work lives go to crap. Unless they really love you, they too will bail -- management as well. It is actually a very logical move on their part.

If you want people to take the extra step the best method is the tried and true -- cold, hard cash.

Sure, we can threaten to fire the air traffic controllers who don't show up, but this is a short-term problem. Firing a lot of staff will only prolong the problem while at the same time making the immediate situation worse.

Pay is coming regardless for these folks. Should I go to work and endure a boatload of crap for no reward or kick back and enjoy an extended paid vacation? What would you do? Exactly.

Give them a significant bonus for showing up for their shifts and change this dynamic. Otherwise, you can cry all you want about dedication, pride, etc. while you watch the system collapse under the weight of hundreds of missing parts -- and once management bails on you, you are really in deep trouble.

John Conlin is an expert in organizational design and change. He also holds a BS in Earth Sciences and an MBA and is the founder and President of E.I.C. Enterprises. He has been published in American Greatness, The Federalist, The Daily Caller, American Thinker, the Houston Chronicle, the Denver Post, and Public Square Magazine among others.

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