MCI CTLR DESCRIBED BUSY/COMPLEX AND UNDERSTAFFED SHIFT; SUGGESTING OVERTIME AND/OR INCREASED STAFFING AS SOLUTION.

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FOR THE PAST 4 MONTHS; STAFFING AT OUR FACILITY HAS BECOME A MAJOR PROB; WE HAVE HAD NUMEROUS RETIREMENTS AND OTHER CTLRS HAVE BEEN MEDICALLY DISQUALIFIED. WE WERE ORIGINALLY ALLOTTED ABOUT 42 CTLRS. WE NOW HAVE ONLY ABOUT 29 THAT ARE QUALIFIED TO WORK TFC. TODAY WAS NO DIFFERENT THAN MANY OTHER DAYS. MY SHIFT BEGAN AT XA00. A VIP FLEW IN AT APPROX XA50 AND THEN LEFT AROUND XD30. WE HAD 5 CTLRS IN THE RADAR ROOM WITH 4 POS OPEN WITH MY RPTING TO DUTY. WE COULD/SHOULD HAVE HAD A 5TH POS OPEN (SATELLITE RADAR) AS THE WINDS WERE STRONG OUT THE E NECESSITATING AN E FLOW; WHICH IS NOT USED VERY OFTEN AND COMPLICATES OUR AIRSPACE AND PROCS. WE COULD ONLY USE 1 RWY FOR THE MOST PART DUE TO THE WINDS. WE HAD RAIN AND TSTMS MOVING ACROSS OUR AIRSPACE; WHICH ALSO INCREASED OUR WORKLOAD. THE VIP'S PRESENCE IN/UNDER OUR AIRSPACE INCREASED THE COMPLEXITY OF OUR JOBS. BY XD00; WE WERE NOW DOWN TO 3 CTLRS WORKING 3 POS AND THE SUPVR POS WAS COMBINED WITH ARR DATA (A BIG NO-NO TO COMBINE THAT POS ONLY 6 SHORT MONTHS AGO). IT WAS COMMONPLACE FOR CTLRS TO BE ON POS OVER AN HOUR AND A HALF TO TWO HRS AND IT WAS NECESSARY TO TAKE SHORT BREAKS SO CTLRS COULD GO HOME AND THE TRACON REMAINED 'HALF-STAFFED.' BY XC30; THE TRACON STAFFING WAS REDUCED TO 3 AND THE TWR HAD 3 CTLRS. BY XD00; WE HAD ONE MORE EACH. ONLY LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME; WE WERE INSTRUCTED TO START AN EVENING WITH 13 CTLRS. THIS MEANT WE WERE 5 CTLRS SHORT FOR OUR EVENING SHIFT. MY SHIFT ENDED AT XI00 MAKING THEM NOW 6 CTLRS SHORT! HOLDOVER/OVERTIME WAS NOT EVEN CONSIDERED (EVEN THOUGH THE WX; TFC; AND CONFIGN; WOULD HAVE EASILY WARRANTED IT IN THE PAST). THERE WERE SEVERAL TIMES THAT I COULD HAVE USED A SATELLITE CTLR TO HELP ME OUT WITH MY WORKLOAD. OF PARTICULAR CONCERN WAS THE FACT ST JOSEPH APCH CTL WAS SHUT DOWN FOR UPGRADE WORK; AND I WAS REQUIRED TO WORK THEIR APCH TFC AS WELL; MUCH OF IT MIL PROCS; WHICH BOTH MCI APCH CTL (MYSELF; OTHER CTLRS; AND SUPVRS) AS WELL AS CTR CTLRS; ARE NOT INTIMATELY FAMILIAR WITH. THIS REQUIRED ADDITIONAL XCHKING AND COORD. ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS I ASKED THE SUPVR WITH ASSISTANCE IN COORD CONCERNING THESE FLTS. I WAS ALSO REQUIRED TO WORK THE SATELLITE N RADAR'S AIRSPACE WHICH WAS CONFUSING IN ITSELF AS OUR CONFIGN WAS UNUSUAL AND IT UNDER-LAID THE ADJOINING CTLR'S AIRSPACE. CLBING AND VECTORING THESE ACFT REQUIRED ADDITIONAL COORD ON MY PART THAT WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN NECESSARY HAD WE HAD ADEQUATE STAFFING AND THE POS HAD BEEN SPLIT. ON ONE OCCASION; I HAD A SMALL ACFT TRYING TO MAKE AN INST APCH (RNAV-GPS) ON HIS OWN TO AN UNCTLED ARPT. I FELT I DID NOT HAVE ADEQUATE TIME TO WATCH HIM MAKE HIS APCH; BUT LUCKILY I CAUGHT HIM DSNDING BELOW HIS ASSIGNED ALT. EVEN THEN; HE WENT MISSED APCH AND NEEDED TO BE WORKED AGAIN FOR THE APCH. THIS ALL TOOK PLACE WHILE I WAS WORKING DEPS OFF OF MCI AND MKC; WORKING ST JOSEPH APCH CTL; FEEDING THE MCI FINAL -- REQUIRING DILIGENT ATTN DUE TO SPD FLUCTUATIONS AND HDG VARIATIONS THAT THE WX SITUATION DICTATED; AS WELL AS REQUESTING ASSISTANCE WITH NECESSARY COORD. ALL IN ALL; I FELT I WAS VERY TIRED WORKING THIS TYPE OF TFC IN THIS PARTICULARLY UNUSUAL CONFIGN WITH THE WX THAT WAS PRESENT. I FELT I DID NOT HAVE ADEQUATE BREAKS THAT COULD HAVE LED TO A LOSS OF MY ATTN TO THE TFC AND TO A POTENTIAL DISASTER. ESPECIALLY DISTURBING WAS THE FACT THAT WE DID NOT HAVE ANY EXTRA 'BODIES' TO HELP US OUT WHILE WORKING THE TFC. OUR ONLY OPTION TO REMEDY THE SITUATION WAS OFTENTIMES TO 'STOP DEPS.' SIMPLY CALLING IN SOMEONE FOR OVERTIME; OR HOLDING OVER SOME EMPLOYEES FOR OVERTIME WOULD HAVE MADE A DIFFICULT SITUATION SOMEWHAT BETTER.