Rights for the TSA Workforce Act
Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill converts Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees from their current special personnel system to the standard federal employment system under Title 5 of the U.S. Code. This change provides TSA workers with full federal employee rights, including collective bargaining rights under Chapter 71. The conversion must be completed by December 31, 2025.
Who Benefits and How
TSA employees (approximately 60,000 workers including screening agents and Federal air marshals) benefit significantly. They gain full collective bargaining rights under federal labor law, standard federal pay protections (General Schedule), guaranteed no reduction in current pay during conversion, and standard federal workplace protections. Labor unions representing TSA workers (particularly the union certified in 2011) gain full collective bargaining authority at the national level.
Who Bears the Burden and How
TSA management and the Department of Homeland Security face new administrative burdens including implementing the conversion, complying with federal labor relations requirements, and negotiating with unions under standard federal rules. They must also submit multiple reports to Congress on recruitment, diversity, and workplace safety. The Secretary of Homeland Security must consult with unions within 7 days of enactment and develop conversion plans.
Key Provisions
- Freezes current TSA personnel systems on date of enactment and requires conversion to Title 5 by December 31, 2025
- Guarantees no pay reduction for converted employees and credits prior service for determining pay step
- Grants full Chapter 71 collective bargaining rights to TSA employees at the national level
- Protects Federal air marshal premium pay and overtime at pre-enactment levels
- Requires GAO reviews of recruitment, diversity, workplace safety, and implementation
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Converts TSA employees from special personnel management systems to standard federal employment under Title 5 U.S.C., granting them full federal employee rights including collective bargaining
Key Policy Areas
Labor Relations, Transportation Security, Federal Employment
Primary Purpose
Converts TSA employees from special personnel management systems to standard federal employment under Title 5 U.S.C., granting them full federal employee rights including collective bargaining
Policy Domains
Rights for the TSA Workforce Act
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- TSA screening agents and employees
- Federal Air Marshals
- Labor unions representing TSA workers
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- TSA management
- Department of Homeland Security
- Federal taxpayers (potential increased labor costs)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Schatz (for himself, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Van …
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, …
Introduced in Senate
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
TSA employees, TSA employees (all covered positions), TSA employees and screening agents
Positive-direction: TSA employees, TSA employees and screening agents, TSA employees converting to Title 5, TSA screening agents, TSA screening agents and employees, Transportation Security Administration
Negative-direction: TSA management, TSA management and administrators
Department of Homeland Security, Government Accountability Office, TSA Administrator
Federal Air Marshal representative organizations, Labor unions representing TSA workers
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
- "the_administrator"
- → Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration
- "the_administration"
- → Transportation Security Administration
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
An employee who occupies a covered position within the Transportation Security Administration
A position within the Administration (TSA)
A full- or part-time non-supervisory covered employee carrying out screening functions under section 44901 of title 49, United States Code
The date on which the conversion provisions of section 3(c)(1) take effect (no later than December 31, 2025)
Any personnel management system established or modified under section 111(d) of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act or section 114(n) of title 49
The rate of pay fixed by law or administrative action for a position before deductions, plus any regular supplemental payment for non-overtime hours creditable as basic pay for retirement purposes
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology