TSA to sign first-ever collective bargaining agreement today

Washington Post: TSA to sign first-ever collective bargaining agreement today

The nation’s largest federal-employee union today is scheduled make history with the Transportation Security Administration by signing the first-ever collective bargaining agreement for the agency’s 45,000 transportation security officers. The American Federation of Government Employees and the TSA finished negotiating terms for a contract on Aug. 3, and TSA workers ratified the agreement on Nov. 9 with a vote of 17,326-1,774. The contract took eight months to negotiate. The agreement largely deals with consistency and fairness on annual-leave bidding, shift bidding, shift trades and movement between full- and part-time status, as well as uniform allowances. It also allows officers to take certain issues to the Merit Systems Protection Board or a neutral arbitrator.​

 

Uniform allowances for TSA employees are worse than a bad joke. Not only do they enjoy sticking their hands down people's pants, they want officious-looking uniforms so they can feel they've got more "authoritah" to do so.

 

AFGE represents BOP employees. Why is their uniform allowance only $400?

 

I think that one of the most telling statistics in all of the info related in this article was how many employees voted at all - 19100 total... Out of 45k employees. That speaks more of apathy than unified focus in betterment through union representation. That was not even half of the uniformed workforce voting, so it would seem that we have a case of a minority speaking for a silent majority. Not always the best way to operate, and I do not see a lot of renewed focus from the workforce as a result of this - to the contrary, mostly what I have heard about it is the fact that they increased the clothing allowance, and if someone gets in trouble, the union can help them with representation and research.

 

The simple fact that anyone is willing to work for the TSA demonstrates apathy on their part - or a sincere interest in sticking their hands in other people's pants.

Otherwise, they'd have real jobs.