TSA officers receive their 1st paychecks in weeks as staffing strain continues

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- TSA agents are beginning to receive long-awaited paychecks after more than a month of working without pay, but questions remain about whether they will receive additional compensation going forward.

At Philadelphia International Airport, about 15% of TSA workers called out Monday, according to union officials, a figure that's down from roughly 25% over the weekend.

Amid the staffing shortages, lines at security checkpoints were long early Monday morning, but moved more smoothly by the afternoon.

"Whether you're red or blue, everybody needs to get paid," said David Cox of Atlanta.

TSA agents have been working without pay for the past 44 days during the partial government shutdown.

"We want it to be over," said Maggie Sabatino, executive vice president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 333, which represents TSA workers at Philadelphia International Airport and Wilmington Airport.

On Friday, President Donald Trump ordered the Department of Homeland Security to begin issuing checks. According to DHS, most workers are expected to receive at least two full paychecks covering the past two pay periods.

"Some officers have received their pay however, a lot of the pay that they are receiving is inaccurate, it's not for the right amount of hours that they should be getting," Sabatino said.

She added that a few weeks of back pay does little to ease the financial strain many workers are facing.

"They still live paycheck to paycheck. They have families that they're taking care of. So, yes, getting backpay is great, however, it's just going to catch you up," Sabatino said.

Despite the promise of paychecks, callouts continue. Union officials say more than 130 agents called out Monday as the airport prepares for roughly a million travelers during the spring break period.

"We're gonna miss our flight. 100% gonna miss our flight," said Megan Marek of Roxborough.

"It's horrible. It's absolutely horrible. We've been here since 3:30. Still pretty much in the same spot," added Bob Foster of Brookhaven.

Union leaders say TSA agents are currently in pay period six. Workers are receiving back pay for periods four and five and are still owed part of week three.

DHS says it is working aggressively to process the remaining payments.