Holiday travels? Tell the workers who secure our airports and airlines that you are a union member and encourage them to vote Yes for AFGE in the upcoming election

Every year, more than 600 million people travel by air in the U.S. Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) are the workers who staff security check points at our nation’s airports and are responsible for screening all luggage and passengers. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) chartered its first local union for TSOs in 2003, and now represents and advocates for the rights of over 12,000 TSOs.

When the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created in 2001, the Bush administration denied TSOs the right to bargain collectively. Errol Southers has been nominated by President Obama to head the TSA, and has pledged to overturn the Bush rules and grant TSOs full collective bargaining rights once he is confirmed by the full U.S. Senate.

AFGE anticipates a representation election to occur in early 2010 and a union not affiliated with the AFL-CIO will likely be on the ballot as well. Every union member who works at an airport and every union member who flies needs to get involved in this campaign to help AFGE deliver the message to TSOs that they have more power when they join together in a union, and that AFGE has been standing with them from the start. Please contact Candace Lund if you will be traveling by air in the next few weeks and would like luggage tags and/or a sticker to show airport screeners that you support AFGE.