Elon Musk Offers To Pay Salaries Of Unpaid TSA Staff Due To Partial Government Shutdown

(MENAFN- Live Mint) World's richest man Elon Musk on Saturday offered to pay the salaries of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) staffer who have not been paid due to the ongoing partial US government shutdown.

"I would like to offer to pay the salaries of TSA personnel during this funding impasse that is negatively affecting the lives of so many Americans at airports throughout the country," Musk said in a post on X.

TSA staff unpaid due to government shutdown

TSA is part of the US Department of Homeland Securit (DHS), whose government funding remains frozen in Congress.

TSA agents are classified as essential workers and must report to work without pay during the partial shutdown. The partial government shutdown began on February 14, and nearly 65,000 TSA employees, including approximately 50,000 Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) responsible for screening passengers at roughly 440 airports nationwide have been working without getting paid ever since.

They are six days away from missing a second full paycheck, but are being pressured to show up as screening times at some airports stretch on for hours.

Also Read | What's behind long TSA wait times across US airports?

The partial government shutdown, which has frozen the DHS funding came as a double blow to the TSA staff, who were reeling from the effects of last year's 43-day government shutdown.

TSA staff resort to gig work to put food on table

According to ABC News, many TSA staffers are living in fear, with some taking on extra jobs or even leaving the agency altogether to make ends meet.

Rebecca Wolf, president of AFGE Local 1127, who represents TSA officers at 47 airports across several western US states, told Reuters that struggling workers are taking on side gigs like making Amazon deliveries or driving for Lyft and Uber.

Also Read | What's behind long TSA wait times across US airports?

"Many have gone and applied for food stamps within their states," she said. "I have a couple of officers in one of my states that they're actually sleeping in their car and one has been evicted already."

Food banks, donations

The union is alerting members nationwide to food drives and free pantries for groceries. Airports like Minneapolis-St. Paul and Phoenix are accepting donations such as gasoline gift cards, food, or essentials like baby goods. Seattle-Tacoma's airport has opened a food pantry, while at Dallas Fort Worth International, supervisors are bringing food to checkpoints twice a week.

Hundreds quit TSA

There are also reports that hundreds of THS personnel quitting, resulting in staff shortages at airports for passenger screening. According to the DHS, at least 376 have quit their jobs altogether since the shutdown began on Valentine's Day.

Also Read | PreCheck, Global Entry programmes to be suspended amid DHS shutdown-what to know

This has resulted in long queues at airports, often stretching over hours for passenger screening.

“It's just exhausting. Every day it just feels like this weight gets heavier and heavier on us,” Cameron Cochems, a local TSA union leader in Boise, Idaho, told The Associated Press.

Key Takeaways

Elon Musk's offer highlights the financial struggles faced by essential workers during government shutdowns. The partial government shutdown not only affects TSA employees' pay but also their ability to meet basic needs. Many TSA staff are resorting to side jobs and support systems like food banks to survive.

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