LOS ANGELES - The announcement that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) personnel will be allowed to bargain collectively was met with a positive response by the Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association (LAAPOA).
“We know from our own experience that collective bargaining does not diminish security,” states Marshall McClain, president of the L.A. Airport Peace Officers Association. “What it does do is give TSA employees a voice, not on matters of security, but on matters that affect their careers, on their ability to make a better life for themselves and their families.”
John Pistole, the TSA administrator, had this to say about his decision to allow collective bargaining: "The safety of the traveling public is our top priority, and we will not negotiate on security…But morale and employee engagement cannot be separated from achieving superior security." TSA currently ranks 220 out of 224 federal agencies on the “Best Places To Work” survey.
The stage is now set for the two largest federal employee unions to compete in an election (March 9 to April 19) to represent the 45,000 officers who screen airline passengers and their luggage.
Security officers had already been granted the right to vote for a union by the Federal Labor Relations Authority, but now they get to choose a union with the right to collectively negotiate on their behalf. More than 13,000 transportation security officers are union members but the only benefit provided was personal representation.
“This is major step forward for TSA in acknowledging the rights of its employees, in efforts to boost professionalism and in recruiting and retaining high-caliber personnel,” add McClain.
The Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association represents more than 425 sworn police officers and firefighters of the Los Angeles Airport Police Department assigned to protect and serve Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), LA/Ontario International Airport (ONT) and Van Nuys Airport (VNY).
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