Airport security employees checking boarding passes and IDs at airports will no longer be allowed to sit down while working, according to the union representing them.
The Transportation Security Administration will remove all chairs at the travel document checker positions at the entrance to checkpoints, according to the American Federation of Government Employees TSA Council 100.
The move comes nearly two months after TSA Administrator David Cummins was confirmed to lead the agency.
“These chairs serve as basic ergonomic and safety support for officers that stand and walk on hard surfaces all day,” the AFGE Council 100 statement read. “TSA is treating this matter like it is a privilege – it is not; it is basic safety and common decency for the workforce.”
CNN has reached out to TSA and the Department of Homeland Security for more information about the change.
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The removal of chairs the union said, has already begun in most commercial airports. Workers first started finding out about the change on Friday afternoon, but there was no formal notification to AFGE or any of its local chapters, according to one union leader.
As TSA approaches the 25th anniversary of its founding in November, Cummins has held meetings to “rapidly advance key strategic initiatives,” as part of a program dubbed Horizon 25.
“TSA does not have to choose between a secure checkpoint, an efficient checkpoint, and an elevated passenger experience,” he said in a statement announcing the initiative.
The program includes expanding TSA PreCheck, rolling out new technology, privatizing some checkpoints and “improving the passenger experience.” It’s not clear if requiring officers to stand while checking documents relates to this overhaul.
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