Homeland Security canceled the Transportation Security Administration agents’ collective bargaining agreement, saying the labor union has become too big of a problem.
Too many TSA employees are spending their time on union activities rather than manning posts at airports, and too many poor-performing agents are still in their jobs, the department said.
“Thanks to Secretary [Kristi] Noem’s action, Transportation Security Officers will no longer lose their hard-earned dollars to a union that does not represent them,” the department said in announcing the decision.
TSA counts about 65,000 employees, including 50,000 officers who are tasked with screening passengers at airports and other major transportation methods.
The agency was created in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which used airplanes as missiles to strike at major U.S. landmarks.
It was added in to Homeland Security when the department was created by Congress in 2002.
The issue of unionization was a major sticking point, with Democrats insisting on expansive rights and then-President George W. Bush opposing the idea. That was a major issue in the midterm congressional elections that year and Mr. Bush’s view prevailed.
Years later, President Obama moved to grant TSA union rights.
But the Trump administration said it has been a mistake, taking officers away from their duties.
The department said nearly 200 TSA officers are paid by the government but do full-time union work. And a TSA employee survey found a majority of officers feel that poor-performing colleagues are allowed to stay on the job.
“The transportation security officers are losing their hard-earned dollars to a union that did not represent or protect their interests. The union has hindered merit-based performance recognition and advancement—that’s not the American way,” the department said.
Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, the top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, said the department was “lying” about the agency.
“Attempting to negate their legally binding collective bargaining agreement now makes zero sense — it will only reduce morale and hamper the workforce,” the Mississippi lawmaker said.
He said the Biden administration delivered a new union contract with pay increases, and it has cut TSA attrition rates.
He also disputed the department’s assertion that the union is hindering merit-based promotions.
“To the Trump administration and Secretary Noem, this isn’t about improving security or the workforce, it’s about diminishing a workforce so they can transform it in the mold of Project 2025. This will make us all less safe — and I hope it is challenged in court,” Mr. Thompson said.
Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said the union-busting move was retaliation for the lawsuits AFGE has filed against the Trump administration so far.
“Now our TSA officers are paying the price with this clearly retaliatory action,” he said.
AFGE said union work accounts for less than half a percent of the total paid work hours of TSA officers.
