Homeland Security Appropriations

3/04/2010

Subcommittee on Homeland Security Appropriations

Mr. Chairman, and Ranking Member Rogers, as President of the National Treasury Employees Union, I would like to lend our support for the additional positions called for in the FY 2011 administration budget proposal. Additional technology at the airports will require additional Transportation Security Officers (TSOs), especially in those airports where staffing has been less than ideal. I also want to take this opportunity to highlight several serious problems within the Transportation Security Administration that affect adversely the TSA workforce, which we represent.

We believe that there are many issues facing frontline TSA personnel, the resolution of which could greatly enhance their ability to successfully provide the most effective transportation security system in the world. First and foremost, we believe that TSA desperately needs experienced, permanent leadership. We hope to see quick action on another nomination in the very near future.

When the Transportation Security Administration was created, the goal was to create a professional, stable, experienced workforce. Nine years later, TSA has one of the highest attrition rates, close to the highest injury rate and the lowest morale in the federal government. Clearly, these facts are evidence that the goals of the Act are not being met.

NTEU believes there are a number of factors contributing to the disturbing trends at TSA that need to be addressed. The most critical is the inadequate pay of TSOs. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that TSOs are paid roughly $1,700 less per year than their counterparts in the General Schedule pay system in effect for the majority of the federal workforce.

This past October, a review of the adequacy of pay for frontline Customs and Border Protection personnel led Secretary Napolitano, with strong support from NTEU, to order an upgrade for CBP law enforcement related positions. We believe that upgrading TSO pay to reflect their mission critical duties would lead to a distinct improvement in the agency’s ability to recruit and retain a highly skilled and professional workforce.

We also believe that TSA’s Performance Accountability and Standards System (PASS) is deeply flawed. It does not function as a performance-based pay system should, by setting objective, measurable performance standards and specific incentives to be earned by meeting those standards at the outset of an appraisal period. Testing under the system does not reflect actual screening conditions and is not consistent with the training provided to Transportation Security Officers. In short, performance assessment and skills testing are conducted in a way that demoralizes the workforce instead of promoting mission readiness.

Our TSO members also tell us, and TSA management has acknowledged that nationally set policies are often not followed by local managers. This is unacceptable and must be addressed. Poor workforce management has led TSOs to seek collective bargaining so that they will have a way to address these pressing workplace problems, and make TSA the most professional, effective and efficient agency possible. Collective bargaining helps to develop fair, credible and transparent

processes without interfering with management rights to accomplish agency missions.

There are many other areas that need investigation: unfair leave practices that negatively impact PASS ratings, inadequate staffing levels, excessive use of formal disciplinary measures to address what are effectively performance and training issues, the lack of fair and credible dispute resolution processes – the list is long. NTEU thanks you and Rep. Rogers for your thoughtful stewardship of TSA. We believe that, working together, we can create a TSA that is the best-run airport security system in the world.