Seek Grievance, Bargaining Rights:
Airport Security Staff Hurdles

By ARI PAUL

U.S. Transportation Security Administration employees have won several victories but are still battling for fair representation rights, union officials said Oct. 4 in a conference call.

AFGE Photo 'POTEMKIN VILLAGE': American Federation of Government Employees lawyer Hampton Stennis told reporters Oct. 4 that the Transportation Safety Administration's employee representation directive only 'looks good on paper.' He said, 'They can deny a representative to even be present at the grievance due to operational needs.'

The American Federal of Government Employees celebrated the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling overturning a lower court's decision not to hear allegations from a former TSA employee that he was fired for informing his co-workers about the union. But AFGE officials blasted a TSA directive that gives employees representation in disciplinary and U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission cases.

Illusion of Help

"The determination of who is allowed to represent employees is solely in the hands of the agency," said union attorney Hampton Stennis. "It's another Potemkin Village set up by the TSA."

He added, "They can deny a representative to even be present at the grievance due to operational needs. It is not a fair system to the employees."

While the AFGE has about 5,000 members employed by TSA at more than 50 airports, TSA employees are not allowed to collectively bargain. The National Treasury Employees Union also represents TSA workers at John F. Kennedy International Airport and plans to organize at others.

Congress approved language in 9/11-related legislation earlier this year that would have granted TSA workers collective-bargaining rights, but it was taken out of the final bill due to a veto threat from President Bush. U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey introduced a new bill to grant TSA workers such rights in July.

TSA was formed in the aftermath of 9/11 and is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

In a letter to Federal lawmakers Oct. 1, AFGE Legislative and Political Director Beth Moten said that low morale and high attrition rates, in addition to 8,000 worker injury complaints last year, were hurting the agency.

No Future

"Over 60 percent of [Transportation Security Officers] believe that promotions are not based on merit or how well they perform their jobs and do not believe they have the opportunity to advance their careers at TSA," she said.

She continued, "By TSA's own admission, TSO attrition rates during the first eight months of fiscal 2007 stand at 19.6 percent, far exceeding the 2.2-percent attrition rate for Federal civilian employees."

During the conference call, officials claimed that understaffing at TSA hurt airplane safety as well. AFGE Legislative Representative Charity Wilson said that the solution to these problems was granting workers the right to collectively bargain. She noted that the union is increasing pressure on Congress to pass Congresswoman Lowey's legislation.

"We do believe the majority of Congress is with us," she said.