Health Issues Have Sidelined Over 2,000
The day-to-day rigors of
sitting for hours onboard commercial airline flights may be taking
a disturbing toll on those in the Federal Air Marshal Service,
where the size of the force has been cut in half by on-the-job
injuries.
A report by the Washington Times says such injuries have pulled
nearly 2,100 marshals from service -- and worse, bureaucratic
bickering may be keeping them from receiving health and safety
benefits.
Marshals are complaining in droves of illness related to flying
such as barotrauma, decompression sickness causing ruptured
eardrums and severe sinus conditions. Physicians say they also
suffer from deep vein thrombosis, or DVT, an illness attributed to
sitting for long periods.
The Times obtained a copy of a memo from the Charlotte, NC field
office saying it was missing mission because marshals were calling
in sick or were grounded by physicians.
"Five percent nationwide are affected by sinus and ear problems
daily. These groundings all have a commonality of being directly
related to our current flight schedules," said the memo -- which
also cited 17 documented cases of barotrauma in its office alone.
"Our health is being eroded at an alarming rate."
Marshals have seen their schedules increase from three legs per
day in 2005, to four legs per day now... this because of fewer
available marshals and higher demand for flight coverage. A normal
schedule sees a marshal flying five days in a row, followed by two
days off.
The US Labor Department says 2,450 marshals have applied for
Worker's Compensation between October 1, 2003 through September 14,
2006. The Times cites several cases of marshals fired after
illnesses or injuries caused on the job meant a medical
grounding.
In the case of Jimmie Bacco, he was fired while undergoing brain
surgery at the Mayo clinic. Doctors say he had cerebral spinal
fluid leaking from his ear, an injury related to flying. He says
was fired because he'll no longer be able to perform his job -- and
his disability claim for $80,000 to pay the Mayo clinic has been
denied.
"The amount of guys terminated because of this is enormous,"
said Bacco. "Some are demoted and given administrative positions at
half their pay, others are terminated."
Last year the Federal Air Marshal Service budget for worker's
compensation went $3 million over its $3 million budget. This
year's $6 million budget is already $1 million short.
The Times reports Conan Bruce, spokesman for the air marshal
service, did not return several calls for comment.