Homeland Security Terminates Collective Bargaining for TSA Airport Security Personnel

On Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced its decision to terminate the union collective bargaining agreement for Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents, aiming to “enhance productivity and resiliency” at U.S. airports.

The airport screening agency pointed out that it now has “more people doing full-time union work than we have performing screening functions at 86% of our airports.” DHS noted, “Of the 432 federalized airports, 374 have fewer than 200 TSA Officers available to [conduct] screening functions.”

The TSA employs approximately 50,000 transportation safety officers tasked with staffing airports nationwide and ensuring that hundreds of thousands of passengers daily do not carry weapons or explosives into secure airport areas. The TSA was formed in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks under the Bush administration.

“Thanks to Secretary [Kristi] Noem’s action, Transportation Security Officers will no longer lose their hard-earned compensation to a union that fails to represent them,” a DHS spokesperson communicated in an official press release.

The decision made on Friday is expected to allow American travelers to “experience a more effective and modernized workforce across the nation’s transportation networks,” the statement added. “TSA is recommitting itself to ensuring a swift and secure travel process for Americans.”

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The choice to terminate the collective bargaining agreement follows President Donald Trump’s administration’s dismissal of TSA Administrator David Pekoske on the day of the president’s inauguration. Currently, the agency operates without an administrator or a deputy administrator.

In May 2024, the TSA and the American Federation of Government Employees had signed a seven-year collective bargaining agreement. During the signing ceremony, Pekoske remarked that without such an agreement, “we probably wouldn’t have a TSA in five or 10 years.”

The agreement provided TSA employees with improved shift trade options, increased uniform allowances, the introduction of parental bereavement leave, and provisions for weather and safety leave.

In response to the recent decision, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) expressed concerns about potential disruptions within the TSA.

“Attempting to invalidate their legally binding collective bargaining agreement now makes no sense—it will only diminish morale and hinder the workforce,” Thompson stated in a Friday announcement. “Since the Biden Administration offered pay raises and a new collective bargaining contract to the workforce, TSA’s attrition rates have significantly decreased.”

Since assuming office, the Trump administration has introduced various directives leading to lawsuits and threats from unions. Upon his return in January, the president instructed workers to resume in-office duties, terminated remote work policies, mandated a reduction in the workforce by laying off probationary employees, and ordered shutdowns or relocations of entire agencies.

The American Federation of Government Employees has initiated at least one lawsuit against the Trump administration since January concerning the Office of Personnel Management’s directive to lay off many federal employees. They have not publicly commented on the DHS announcement made on Friday.

Before the tragic events of Sept. 11, security screenings at most U.S. airports were carried out by private companies. This changed with the establishment of the TSA over two decades ago.

The Epoch Times reached out to both TSA and the TSA union, the American Federation of Government Employees, for comments on Friday.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.