TSA Is Taking Chairs Away From Airport ID Checkers—To Make Your Trip More Welcoming

TSA is taking chairs away from the officers who check your ID at airport security. The agency says making them stand will improve security and make the checkpoint more welcoming. While I’m often critical of the agency for ‘security theater’ I’ve never once thought that the thing standing between passengers and a better experience was a document checker with sore feet. The agency confirmed the change on Tuesday. Chairs are being removed from TSA podiums nationwide. TSA calls it a “welcome change” and touts: “our commitment to hospitality by having these officers on their feet and alert” The agency also points to employee fitness requirements. The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents screeners, says it learned about the change from its members rather than advance notification from the government. It argues the chairs provide relief for employees who already spend much of their day standing and walking on hard floors. Employees were already discussing the change online last week. One commenter wrote: No explanation managers just came in briefed everyone really quickly and chairs gone right after. Others said they were told it was about professionalism. Some reported that their airports had removed chairs months earlier. One described the document-checking assignment as usually lasting 30 minutes, with the chance to sit during that rotation providing welcome relief. I don’t care whether the person checking my ID is sitting. They should be paying attention, treating passengers with respect, and moving the line efficiently. I’m not sure a stool is a problem. The TSA broadly claims ‘lack of a terrorist attack’ is proof of their success (even without evidence of an active plot). There hasn’t been a terrorist attack with document checkers sitting. TSA’s explanation isn’t even security-related, it’s hospitality. Government research suggests that long periods of standing at work leads to fatigue, back pain, muscle discomfort and leg swelling and recommends the ability to change between sitting, standing and leaning. Even TSA’s 2024 labor agreement calls for anti-fatigue mats where employees stand in one place for extended periods, along with ergonomic equipment. I’ve been writing about TSA’s peculiar ideas for the document-checking podium for years. In 2011, there were routine questions that passengers could hear everyone ahead of them answering. There were also plans to use questions and eye contact to assess whether travelers posed a threat, after a short training course. I’ve long favored separating the agency that sets security standards from the organization performing the screening. Having TSA regulate its own work creates an obvious accountability problem. The union and I aren’t on the same side of that debate. But taking away a chair isn’t this sort of accountability for performing checks accurately. (HT: Paddle Your Own Kanoo) Topics on this page