The Transportation Security Administration will vote in the near future on unions. The Obama administration has paved the way. TSA Administrator John Pistole is expected to grant the wish.
So now what?
“If you think air travel is bad now, just wait until the airport screeners unionize,” writes James Sherk, a senior policy analyst in labor economics at The Heritage Foundation.
This will not improve holiday travel, writes Sherk in the McClatchy-Tribune News Service
“Unions already make getting rid of problem employees difficult. Those screeners who pat down too enthusiastically will get a union to hide behind. Do you think that will improve travel?” he writes .
But will this improve security? He is far from being alone in arguing "no way."
Observers recall how disgruntled Toronto screeners slowed down the process by inspecting every piece of luggage. Lines of passengers at Thanksgiving were long. Eventually, passengers were pushed onto the planes without being searched.
“Fortunately, none of those passengers were terrorists. But as one Canadian security expert wryly noted, ‘If terrorists had known … that their baggage wasn’t going to be searched, that would have been bad,’" Sherk says.
Unions will reduce safety even without labor disputes. Collective bargaining requires the government to negotiate before changing working conditions.
“However, terrorists are not going to wait until bargaining ends to attack. Unions reduce the flexibility the government needs to respond to threats,” Sherk writes.
Unionizing the TSA would add 50,000 members to union ranks – as many as currently work for GM.
No surprise: the unions are in favor of the move.
By David Wilkening
