S-944 : Still Just a Bill

Strengthening American Transportation Security Act of 2019

This bill expresses the sense of Congress that the personnel system used by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) provides insufficient workplace protections for its workforce and such personnel should be entitled to protections under the civil service system applicable to all federal employees.

Among other things, the bill

• eliminates personnel authorities of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Transportation governing the conditions of employment for TSA employees, thus making TSA employees subject to the personnel management system applicable to other federal employees;
• sets forth transition rules that protect the pay rates and other rights of TSA employees;
• requires DHS to consult with the labor organization certified by the Federal Labor Relations Authority to carry out the conversion of such positions; and
• does not affect the prohibitions against disloyalty and asserting the right to strike against the federal government.