Unions: Airport Screeners Lack 'Whistle' Rights

By ARI PAUL

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration agreed last week to enhance whistleblower protection for its airport screeners, allowing them to appeal cases to the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, but two unions involved said it wasn't enough.

JOHN GAGE: Still lack appeal rights.

The American Federation of Government Employees, the main TSA union, welcomed the agreement but called for further protection.

No Right to Appeal

"It's clear that TSA's previous assertions regarding the adequate coverage for whistleblower protection were flawed," AFGE National President John Gage said in a statement. "The TSA/MSPB agreement does not allow [Transportation Security Officers] to appeal a negative decision to the Federal courts, which current whistleblower protection law allows other Federal workers to do. The agreement also allows MSPB and TSA to negotiate on the procedures governing the processing of TSO whistleblower complaints. It is imperative that MSPB issue [its] own regulations and not negotiate with the agency they are overseeing."

The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents screeners at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, derided the agreement, calling it a "token effort."

"Rather than leave the extension of this much-needed right for TSOs to the agency's discretion, we are going to continue seeking legislation on this issue," NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley said in a statement. "Providing full whistleblower rights to the more-than 40,000 airport screeners nationwide would be one step in a long process that TSA needs to undertake to reduce high turnover rates and boost morale in the work force."

She added that TSA screeners should be allowed to collectively bargain as well.