Is the End of Long Airport Waits in Sight?

(SeaPRwire) –   The partial government shutdown persists, yet the staffing shortages at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) that caused lengthy delays at airports nationwide in previous weeks seem to be easing.

According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the number of TSA agents calling out sick has dropped by over 43% since President Donald Trump mandated that staff receive pay during the continuing shutdown.

“This clearly shows the result of funding and backing our workforce,” DHS Acting Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Lauren Bis stated. “We thank President Trump for making sure our devoted TSA officers can carry on with their essential task of securing the traveling public.”

On March 27, Trump released a presidential memorandum directing Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought to compensate TSA agents using current funds “that have a reasonable and logical nexus to TSA operations.” TSA officers started getting their back pay last week.

The shutdown, the longest ever recorded in the U.S., started on February 14 following a deadlock between Democrats and Republicans over immigration enforcement. Air travel descended into disorder before the President ordered pay for TSA officers due to the funding gap. While TSA agents are deemed essential and must work without pay during a shutdown, the situation led many to skip shifts to find other work to cover expenses. This caused staffing shortages at various airports, leading to security lines that lasted for hours.

On March 27, which saw the highest absenteeism since the DHS shutdown started on Feb. 14, more than 12% of TSA officers failed to show up. However, DHS reported that by Sunday, the national call-out rate had fallen to just under 8%, with roughly 2,045 agents absent that day.

Call-out rates differ by location. For example, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport had the highest rate on Sunday at 24.6%, per DHS. Philadelphia International Airport was next with 21.5%, followed by John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York with slightly above 20%.

In contrast, Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Pittsburgh International Airport reported Sunday call-out rates of about 12% and 14%, respectively.

Last week, security wait times improved at several airports that had previously experienced delays lasting hours. This trend of shorter waits continued on Monday. By late Monday afternoon, both Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and LaGuardia Airport in New York reported security waits of 10 minutes or less.

Some airports, however, experienced longer delays; John F. Kennedy International Airport reported waits of about 30 minutes at four terminals late Monday afternoon. Even so, this is a significant reduction from the waits of an hour or more reported by travelers at that airport two weeks ago.

It remains to be seen how long the DHS shutdown will last. While Senate and House Republicans announced a tentative deal last week to fund most of DHS—excluding immigration enforcement agencies—through September, the House did not act on the legislation on Thursday. It now appears that an agreement to reopen the department may not be passed until the House returns from its two-week recess next week.