Union officers representing TSA staff and Logan airport representatives debunked viral rumors of a piece stoppage Monday, as the federal government shutdown continues to impression TSA workers pay and air journey across the nation.
“We have not heard anything about a TSA strike,” stated Massport spokesperson Benjamin Crawley on Monday. “We are in close contact with our federal partners and meet with them daily.”
A viral Reddit submit Sunday claimed an individual on the Atlanta airport said “TSA are telling people they are all striking,” stirring hypothesis a couple of potential work stoppage. For practically three weeks of the present authorities shutdown that started Oct. 1, federal TSA staff have been required to report for work however haven’t been paid.
Nevertheless, the American Federation of Authorities Staff union representing the TSA staff stated they do “not support strikes and would never call for our members to delay essential services the American people depend on.”
Transportation Safety Officers (TSOs), which make up nearly all of the TSA, are represented by the AFGE union. Although the Division of Homeland safety ended TSOs proper to collective bargaining in March, the AFGE continues to symbolize round 47,000 nationwide.
“AFGE members at TSA are dedicated to ensuring that the traveling public are safe in airports and in the skies,” stated AFGE Director of Communications Brittany Holder.
AAA Northeast spokesperson Mark Schieldrop stated Monday although he couldn’t touch upon the strike rumor, “what I can say is that we are seeing some impacts already due to the shutdown with longer wait times during busy periods and flight delays, particularly at hub airports.”
Schieldrop added a “strike could be extremely disruptive for air travel, no question.”
The flight tracker service FlightAware reported simply over 70 flights out, into or inside the U.S. cancelled as of about 6 p.m. Monday, and simply over 5,000 delayed. The stories remained near the identical vary as delays and cancellations Sunday.
Boston topped a listing of U.S. airport hubs with essentially the most delays and cancellations Monday afternoon, with 85 delayed flights and seven cancelled flights between 4 p.m. and eight p.m., in line with FlightAware knowledge. Departures had been delayed a median of 40 minutes Monday.
Chicago O’Hare airport ranked second among the many hubs, with 91 delayed and 1 cancelled, FlightAware confirmed.
In a shutdown replace posted Oct. 14, AFGE detailed efforts to get politicians to reopen the federal government instantly, block mass firings threatened through the shutdown, demand assurances federal furloughed staff will obtain pay, and defend federal staff financially through the shutdown.
“Let me start with a simple truth: every day this government stays shut down, real people are hurting,” AFGE Nationwide President Everett Kelley stated within the assertion. “So today, I call on leaders from both parties to sit down together, work out your differences, and find a solution that reflects the best of America, just like federal employees do every single day.”
