Some air traffic controllers weren’t working but had gotten paid as though they had worked full shifts

See Air-Traffic Staffing Rules Tightened at Reagan Airport After Fatal Crash: Investigators scrutinize irregular staffing in control tower the night of midair collision between Army helicopter and commercial jet by Andrew Tangel of The WSJ. Excerpt:

"In 2021, a serious close call involving Air Force jets, a Marine helicopter used to transport the vice president, and a commercial plane sparked an FAA investigation into the airport tower’s staffing, people familiar with the probe said. An air-traffic controller was juggling oversight of area helicopter and airplane traffic, despite a policy for two people to handle those responsibilities at that time of day.

The 2021 investigation found that some controllers weren’t working but had gotten paid as though they had worked full shifts—including a practice commonly known in air traffic as an “early shove.”"

"Since the crash, senior FAA officials have also told air-traffic facility managers that personnel must work all the hours for which they are assigned."

"An internal FAA review said the airport tower’s staffing wasn’t normal for the time of day and volume of traffic"

"At one point, only senior facility managers could allow the helicopter position to be combined early. The FAA later allowed lower-ranking tower employees such as supervisors to make that call so long as they considered factors like traffic levels, weather and VIP moments.

On May 20, 2021, the tower’s helicopter and airplane monitoring positions were combined before the normal scheduled time because controllers left early"

"The FAA spokeswoman said past cases of noncompliance with time and attendance requirements have been investigated and resulted in discipline."