Airport Screeners Move Closer to Bargaining Rights
The nation’s 43.000 airport screeners are a big step closer to having the basic freedom to choose a union and bargain collectively. Last week, the House Homeland Security Committee approved legislation that would give transportation security officers (TSOs) the same workplace protections covering other federal employees.
Security screeners in airports around the country are the first line of defense against terrorism in our skies. But they suffer from high injury rates, attrition and low morale, according to the committee.
Although TSOs have been denied the freedom to bargain collectively, AFGE represents 10,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers nationwide and regularly represents these employees before the TSA Disciplinary Review Board, the Equal Opportunity Commission, Congress and in the courts.
Buy American Opponents: Un-American
What do Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce have in common?
They both oppose provisions in the economic recovery package that would ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent on products that are made in America-to the maximum extent possible. The Buy America provision survived the recent Senate debate, despite attempts to kill it by someone who consistently wraps himself in the American flag: Sen. John McCain.
In the words of United Steelworkers President Leo Gerard, organizations like the Chamber of Commerce and Business Roundtable “want to give American tax dollars to foreign manufacturers to create jobs overseas.”
