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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E271]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RIGHTS FOR TRANSPORTATION SECURITY OFFICERS ACT OF 2020
______
speech of
HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE
of texas
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, March 4, 2020
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chair, I rise to speak in strong support of H.R.
1140, the Rights for Transportation Security Officers Act of 2020,
which will create civil service protections for TSA employees that are
long overdue.
H.R. 1140, mandates the conversion of all covered employees and
positions within the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to
the provisions of title 5, United State Code.
The bill represents a longstanding priority for Chairman Thompson,
the bill's author, and my own as a former chair of the Homeland
Security Committee's Subcommittee on Transportation Security to extend
the rights and protections afford to all federal government employees
to TSA personnel.
Several versions of the bill have been introduced over the past
decade, but this Congress is the first time the bill has received
overwhelming, bipartisan support, with 236 cosponsors including 10
Republicans.
The legislation curtails TSA's broad authorities to create and
control its personnel systems, instead requiring TSA to abide by the
provisions of title 5 which regulate personnel systems for most Federal
agencies.
The bill would provide TSA employees with the workforce protections
and benefits available to most other Federal workers.
The bill sets forth transition rules to protect the rate of pay and
other rights of TSA employees during a transition to title 5.
The bill also requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to consult
with the appropriate labor organizations to carry out the transition.
This bill does not affect prohibitions against disloyalty and
asserting the right to strike against the federal government.
The bill also extends the timeline for the transition from 60 days to
a more realistic 180 days, and it contains language to protect
employees with grievances or disciplinary actions pending during the
transition.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, nearly 3,000 people were killed
in a series of coordinated terrorist attacks in New York, Pennsylvania
and Virginia.
The attacks resulted in the creation of the Transportation Security
Administration, which was designed to prevent similar attacks in the
future by removing the responsibility for transportation security from
private entities.
The Aviation and Transportation Security Act, passed by the 107th
Congress and signed on November 19, 2001, established TSA just 2 months
following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The urgent need to provide a response to the available security
threat was facing meant that much of the work to provide administrative
structure and integration measures that would have woven in the civil
service protections now be added did not occur at that time.
The TSA's mission is to protect the nation's transportation systems
to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce.
The work of the TSA is a frontline Department of Homeland Security
and it is not easy--it can in fact be very dangerous.
Like many of my colleagues, I recall the shooting incident at LAX
that killed Gerardo Hernandez, who became the first TSA officer killed
in the line of duty; and the machete attack at the Louis Armstrong New
Orleans International Airport that resulted in injuries to Senior
Transportation Security Officer Carol Richel.
These incidents only highlight the difficult work that the men and
women of the TSA must perform each day to keep our nation's airports
and flights safe.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) supports several key parts
of the U.S. coronavirus response.
The TSA is responsible for: enforcing the travel restrictions for all
flights that are carrying individuals who have recently traveled from
China; notifying passengers and travelers of risks of contracting the
virus; and coordinating with air carriers and airports to discuss
government actions and seek input (TSA).
Allegations about mismanagement, wasteful procedures, retaliation
against whistleblowers, low morale, and security gaps within the Agency
are causes for concern.
TSA has consistently struggled with low morale across the workforce,
ranking 303 out of 305 government agencies in 2016.
Low morale has a nexus to the high turnover rate within the ranks of
Transportation Security Officers (TSOs).
TSOs represent 70 percent of the TSA workforce, yet have been denied
full collective bargaining rights, whistleblower protections, and
opportunities to effectively raise issues in dispute to an independent
third party, such as the Merit Systems Protection Board.
Additionally, TSOs are subject to a pay and performance system that
does not track with the General Services (GS) wage system, the primary
wage system for Federal workers.
It is past time to make the changes provided by H.R. 1140, so the TSA
workforce is treated equally to other federal employees with the power
to advance and expand their opportunities as government employees.
I ask my colleagues to join me in voting for H.R. 1140.
____________________