If a nasty contract dispute between the Federal Aviation Administration and the air traffic controller's union does not get resolved by June, a host of controllers - including two of the 14 at Augusta Regional Airport - are threatening early retirement.

The fight, which has spanned nine months, has implications for overall air traffic safety, experts said.

Doug Church, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controller's Association, said that about a quarter of the nation's 15,000 controllers are eligible to retire in the next two years and that many of them say they will leave then if Congress does not act on the FAA's proposed contract.

The contract would raise controllers' average cash compensation from $128,500 a year to $139,900, falling below the union offer of $144,300, according to FAA spokesman Geoffrey Basye.

The two groups began contract negotiations last July and went back and forth for nine months without resolution, so the matter was assigned to Congress last month.

"The issue here is fairness; it's never been about money," Mr. Church said.. "We want the FAA to live up to its bargain of fair collective bargaining."

Besides differences over salaries, the two groups are at odds over numerous work-rule provisions, such as overtime pay and vacation time.

Mr. Basye said the FAA's main objections are over requests by the controllers union for $40 million in bonuses for the entire work force and a guaranteed two weeks of vacation time during the summer.

"That's our busiest time of the year," he said. "Then we'd have less controllers working at one time, which jeopardizes safety."

The FAA said air traffic controllers have received an unprecedented 75 percent increase in salary in the past eight years, while similar industries have faced pay cuts.

That puts controllers' average earnings at double what most other public servants make, the FAA contends.

For instance, an air traffic controller in Augusta averages $80,446 a year, compared with $34,710 for area firefighters, $32,100 for police officers and $50,550 for registered nurses, according to the Department of Labor.

Mr. Basye adds that further increasing pay for controllers "would be aviation aristocracy," putting them financially ahead of other aviation professionals.

Untrue, says Mr. Church. He said that the only aviation-related workers who control the safety of aircraft as much as controllers are pilots and that industrywide their salaries are vastly higher than controllers'.

He calls salary comparisons with other public servants a "divide and conquer strategy."

"Even the firefighters' union has objected to this," Mr. Church said. "That kind of talk has no place in this discussion."

The air traffic controllers' union's main point is that not all controllers' pay will increase under the FAA's proposal.

According to Mr. Church, a newly hired controller will make 30 percent less.

In addition, experienced controllers such as Carl Chesley, who is Augusta's union representative, will bring in $100 to $150 less per pay period.

"Everybody at the building will see the same thing," he said. "But according to the FAA, I'm not getting a pay cut; I'm seeing less pay."

Reach Dena Levitz at (706) 823-3339 or dena.levitz@augustachronicle.com.