Nearly four dozen Transportation Security Administration screening officers at airports in 13 states have tested positive for the coronavirus and are not working as of Friday, according to the federal agency.
“In the past 14 days across the nation, there are 46 TSA screening officers who have tested positive for COVID-19,” according to the TSA. “In addition, 5 non-screening employees who have relatively limited interaction with the traveling public, have tested positive for the virus over the same period.”
TSA employees who work at airports stand in close proximity to passengers, make physical contact to pat down people, and are constantly in contact with people’s belongings.
Airports in New York are hardest hit with 20 cases, most of which are at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Long Island. New York leads the nation in confirmed coronavirus cases. More than one officer has tested positive in the last two weeks at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport, and Nashville International Airport.
TSA created a map “for the purpose of notifying the public about airports where TSA officers have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus so that they could make the best personal health decisions if they feel they need to do so if they could have possibly come in contact with one of those officers,” it said in a statement.
TSA has 50,000 officers who inspect checked bags and people at security checkpoints at 440 airports nationwide. It is not clear how many additional people have called in sick but have not been tested. In a statement provided Friday, TSA told the Washington Examiner it was monitoring how many people were boarding flights every day to make sure that airports had enough officers working to get people through security without delay.
“As for staffing, Passenger counts and staffing requirements are monitored nationally to determine if checkpoint alterations are necessary at a specific airport,” TSA wrote. “In addition, staffing is managed locally (airport by airport) based on available resources and safety measures.
However, the number of people flying in recent weeks has dropped more than 90%, making the demand at checkpoints far easier to manage even with some TSA officers calling in sick. TSA normally screens more than 2 million passengers daily, but due to social distancing measures and stay-at-home orders, air travel has dropped significantly.
On Thursday, officers screened approximately 203,000 passengers compared with 2.4 million on the same weekday a year ago.
The American Federation of Government Employees union for TSA workers announced Friday that officers had been informed earlier in the week that they would receive N95 respirator masks to wear at work in place of basic surgical masks.
“We’ve had meetings, made phone calls, and sent emails almost daily urging TSA management to provide N95 masks and other protective equipment for our officers,” said AFGE TSA Council 100 President Hydrick Thomas. “Our efforts have finally paid off, and now TSOs can serve the public without fear of infecting themselves or passengers.”
