Shutdown: Canada ATC staffers send pizzas to US counterparts with no pay

Washington, Jan 14: The US has already seen the longest shutdown its government has faced and around eight lakh federal employees are working without pay since December 22 for a crisis which has turned into an ego clash between President Donald Trump and his Democratic opponents over the building of the wall on the country's Mexico border.

The employees who have been working without pay include air traffic controllers, like those in the New York Air Traffic Control Center, and to their pleasant surprise, the ATC staff members have found their colleagues from Canada coming up with a solidarity gesture.

According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Canadian ATC staffers from the Atlantic province towns of Gander and Moncton ordered pizzas for their counterparts in Ronkonkoma, Long Island, New York state. According to CBC, a notice came out at the Long Island centre announcing the arrival of 32 pieces, thanks to the Canadian Air Traffic Controller Association (CATCA).

An image of the feel-good notice was posted on Reddit by David Lombardo, a former ATC staff at the Long Island centre besides other employees on Twitter. The gesture was widely appreciated.

Thank you to @CATCA5454 for your generosity! We all appreciate you standing side by side with us. The Air Traffic Family world wide is amazing. pic.twitter.com/bwI69MPZWy

— Joseph lanzetta (@TinPusher688) January 12, 2019

Thank you @CATCA5454 for sending our brothers and sisters at Boston Center pizza! We appreciate your support during our #GovernmentShutdown pic.twitter.com/7umefjrikq

— NATCA New England (@NATCANewEngland) January 12, 2019

@CATCA5454 our brothers from the north sending love and solidarity to @NATCA border facilities pic.twitter.com/Jb6GANYk3o

— Mark Sheehy (@zbw_atc) January 11, 2019

#ShutdownStories: #AirTrafficControllers in Canada have sent pizza to their adjoining U.S. facilities in a show of solidarity & support. #AirTrafficControl

Vancouver Center to Seattle ARTCC
Winnipeg Center to Minneapolis ARTCC
Toronto Center to Cleveland ARTCC

— Lew W (@atclew58) January 11, 2019

However, this is not the first time that an American air traffic control center received such gift from their Canadian counterparts.

"Ever since controllers in Edmonton reportedly ordered pizzas for their colleagues in Anchorage, Alaska on Thursday, Canadian control centers have sent pizzas to 35 U.S. units including those in Boston, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Cleveland," said a report in Mashable India.

It was also learnt that the initiative was taken by the Canadian employees themselves, Ron Singer, spokesperson for Nav Canada, which owns and operates the country's civil air navigation industry, praised them for such a move, reported HuffPost Canada.