Forty-four years after Ronald Reagan fired more than 11,000 striking air traffic controllers, in a union-busting act of bravado, reshaped federal labor policy, and left the FAA chronically understaffed, the ghosts of that decision are on the radar screens once again. As the government shutdown drags on, unpaid controllers are calling out sick, and towers from Chicago to Orlando are running short. Meanwhile, Transportation Secretary, MTv's Sean Duffy is threatening to fire "problem children" who don't show up. This is a grim déjà vu for an industry still suffering the structural damage Reagan set in motion back in 1981.

If controllers keep not showing up, Duffy will fire them, he said.

US secretary of transportation Sean Duffy speaks during a news conference in at Newark Liberty Internati

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