SerpApi.Org
A union that represents about 47,000 Transportation Security Administration employees nationwide has promised to fight a privatization plan at Tampa International Airport.
Tampa International on Tuesday confirmed it joined the TSA Gold+ program, a public-private partnership screening program that hires security employees and manages security equipment. The Trump administration has pushed for airports to privatize security after a government shutdown earlier this year created flight delays nationwide, including at Tampa International.
The American Federation of Government Employees represents Transportation Security Administration employees across the country. In a Tuesday news release, it said the Trump administration’s push “ignores lessons learned from the Sept. 11 attacks and other airline tragedies.”
Airport officials say the privatization effort can protect operations in the case of a government shutdown.
“The change to privatization not only reduces disruption risks caused by lapses in federal appropriations or government shutdowns, but also allows greater flexibility in exploring new screening checkpoint infrastructure and technology to enhance the customer experience,” airport Communications Manager Beau Zimmer wrote in a statement.
Before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, airlines mostly hired private contractors to conduct airport security. Travelers didn’t need to show a boarding pass or ID. After the attacks, the federal government founded the Transportation Security Administration to create security regulations.
Chris Finlay, American Federation of Government Employees local chapter president, said the move is a “slap in the face” to the security employees who worked through government shutdowns. The chapter covers central and northern Florida, including Tampa International.
Finlay also said there are other ways to ensure security employees are funded through a government shutdown. This could be by funding the Department of Homeland Security or the Transportation Security Administration yearly in advance, he said.
“A private company has to be profitable,” Finlay said. “So their first goal is, ‘How do I make money?’ and then whatever the mission is.“
The TSA Gold+ program privatizes employees and security equipment, but all screenings will still follow the administration’s established federal standards, according to Zimmer. This means there will still be standard security,but that a private contractor will soon pay employees and manage security equipment.
The same privacy laws apply to the contractor that will manage the security equipment and technology in accordance with federal regulations. A contractor has not yet been announced.
Other airports have turned security private across the country. This was under an older, separate privatization program in which the federal government contracts security screening services at commercial airports.
The Gold+ program is new as of this year and goes a step further. Private contractors will also provide and manage the technology and equipment used in screenings at airports that opt into the Gold+ program, rather than only the workforce.
Major airports such as Orlando Sanford International and San Francisco international have already transitioned to a private workforce under the earlier older program.
At those airports, Finlay added, public employees were told they had the “first right of refusal” with the private contractor. They were also told employees would have their pay matched by the new employer, Finlay said, but the local union is concerned about how long that match will last when the private company takes over the workforce.
TSA Gold+ presents a “new way” for Tampa International, the Transpoortation Security Administration said in a statement, to “deliver exceptional service to every traveler, while advancing security, efficiency, and the overall airport experience."
“Throughout this transition, we remain committed to operational stability and supporting our employees," the statement said.
Tampa International is one of the first in the country to join the new program. Also announced Tuesday was the Des Moines International Airport in Iowa,which is “exploring” the TSA Gold+ program.
The Trump administration has continued to push smaller airports across the country to privatize its security workforce and equipment. U.S. President Donald Trump’s federal budget proposes cutting more than 8,300 jobs from the Transportation Security Administration. Congress is still debating the new budget.
Tampa International could see its transition complete to a private contractor as soon as May 2027.
A lot of security employees are veterans who may not have been ready to retire, Finlay said, and many made sacrifices earlier this year through the government shutdown in continuing to work without pay.
Finlay said the reward to these employees “should not be to lose their federal job.” This also affects every traveler, he said.
“The bottom line is, if you go on air travel this affects you,” Finlay said. “The safety of the flying public is being sold to private entities for profit. That’s what is happening.”
