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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 17 March 2020

U.S. airport security officers fear exposure as cases rise

WASHINGTON (AP) — At International Airport and medical personnel.
least six Transportation Se- four at the airport in San "TSA follows OSHA and CDC
curity Administration offi- Jose, California. guidance related to per-
cers have tested positive The TSA did not disclose the sonnel protection," it said in
for the new coronavirus total number of employees a written statement.
and dozens were in self- in isolation because of the The agency said it was re-
quarantine Monday as the exposure but the American quiring officers to wear
disease takes an increasing Federation of Government nitrile gloves while check-
toll on an agency critical to Employees, which repre- ing people and baggage
the safety of U.S. aviation. sents the nearly 46,000 offi- to add an extra layer of
TSA said it was providing cers, said about 40 workers protection and instructing
safety training to employ- at just the San Jose airport them not to reuse swabs
ees and operations were were told to self-quaran- used in screening, among
running smoothly. It stood tine. other measures.
by its decision to not pro- Around the globe, airline Gary Holdsworth, a union A woman wearing a mask walks goes through security at Ron-
vide officers with respirators bookings are plummeting vice president for the local ald Reagan Washington National Airport, Monday, March 16,
as their union requested and cancellations soar- in Northern California, said 2020, in Arlington, Va.
last week. ing as governments restrict there has not been any Associated Press
Union leaders said they travel and people fear be- mass sickout in response to
were still concerned, even ing enclosed in an airplane the outbreak despite the public every day you have ning for the outbreak but
as a major drop in traf- for several hours during a increasing stress of poten- no idea," he said. weren't letting that interfere
fic at the nation's airports pandemic that has sick- tial exposure. "You don't Greg Biel, a union regional with their work. "From what I
seemed to reduce the ened more than 180,000 want to panic and you vice president in Portland, can see, everybody is com-
potential for exposure. Of- people and killed more don't want to be paranoid, Oregon, said workers were ing to work and doing the
ficers screen 2 million pas- than 7,100. but when you are in a spot frustrated about what they job they were brought on
sengers around the country TSA said checkpoints re- where you are seeing the see as a poor job plan- board to do," he said.q
on a typical day. main open though some
Joe Shuker, a vice president lanes may be closed. Shuk-
for the union representing er said the Philadelphia air-
workers in the region that port was unusually quiet.
includes Philadelphia and ""There are enough people
Washington, said he was because nobody is flying,"
surprised the government he said. "This place should
hadn't shut down air traffic. be packed right now on a
"Our guys can't stay six feet Monday,"
away from anybody, we're AFGE sent a letter last week
patting people down," to the TSA director asking
Shuker said. 'We're putting that he provide respirators
people at risk for no rea- because surgical masks
son." they were given are insuf-
TSA over the weekend an- ficient for officers who "are
nounced the positive test uniquely susceptible to this
of an officer at Orlando In- outbreak." The request was
ternational Airport who had denied.
last been at work March 10. The agency said in re-
The officer was being treat- sponse to The Associated
ed and all employees who Press that neither the CDC
came into contact with nor the Occupational Safe-
the person over the previ- ty and Health Administra-
ous two weeks were in self- tion recommends respira-
quarantine at home. tors for the officers and says
There was an earlier posi- the equipment should be
tive test by an officer at the reserved for workers in the
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood riskiest situations such as