This is the letter that has been sent out on the internet, to the TSA blogs and other high Government officials within the Republican party, that highlights our position. Please copy and paste this letter, in its entirety, and post to any and all TSA related blogs that you want. Thanks much for your help.
Your voice for change shall and will be heard!
There is a private contractor, Covenant Aviation Security, responsible
for the Checkpoint and Checked baggage screening at San Francisco
International Airport. This private contractor is part of something
called the " Security Partnership Program " which, in the beginning,
started as a pilot program with a 3 year life expectancy. This
relationship should have been terminated quite some time ago. Now, 8
years later, this screening relationship is still in effect. How so,
and why? Well, here's where it gets interesting.
SEIU is the union that the employees of Covenant Aviation have to
belong to to keep their jobs. We know that SEIU, in 2008,
contributed more than 30 million dollars to the State of California
Democratic Party candidates. These candidates include Sen.Diane
Feinstein, Nancy Pelosi and Barbara Boxer. SEIU is one of the most
powerful unions in the country and has 2.2 million members. 700,000
of those members are in the State of California. SEIU is one of the
Nation's top campaign contributors. The attached link will pull up a
story with more information.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/08/31/MNPH1F23SQ.DTL&type=newsbayarea
It appears that the only reason that TSA has not Federalized this
airport is purely political. The power of this financial relationship
with the Democratic Party is preventing this conversion.
SFO is the sixth largest airport in the country. It has increased its
passenger volume by 5% this year in this tough economic
environment. There is no other airport in the country, the size of
SFO, that is controlled by a private contractor. All of the other
private contractors have regional or much smaller airports.
There also appears to be a profit sharing relationship with the
Airport Commission at SFO. We believe that this is a 50/50 split of
the profits. The President of Covenant,
in his presentation to the Orlando Sanford International Airport in Florida, highlighted
some of the benefits of leaving TSA for a private contractor. From Berry's presentation it appears that CAS makes money on the interest (they share half the profit after interest) The government prints money, CAS can put this money in the bank until it is needed to meet the payroll.
This link will pull up the minutes of this presentation.
http://www.osaa.net/documents/boardminutes/8-3-2010.pdf.
There are two ways that SFO can become Federalized. One way would be
for the Airport officials to request a change over. (And that will
never happen, as long as there is a revenue sharing arrangement
between Covenant Aviation Security and SFO.) The second and more
probable way, would be for Mr.John Pistole, the TSA Administrator, to
decide that SFO should be federalized.
Is the "Democratic Obama Administration" conveniently turning a blind
eye to the goings on at SFO? Does the Democratic Party feel that they
have nothing to fear and are untouchable? Does the security of the
American public flying out of SFO come down to an issue of political
contributions to the Democratic Party? It certainly appears to be so!
The American people need to know that the safety, of passengers flying
into and out of SFO, are of secondary importance and that decisions are made based on contributions by SEIU to
the Democratic Party.
TSA needs to take the necessary steps now
to safeguard the American public and not continue with this purely
political and financial relationship.
A blog dedicated to the TSOs, LTSOs, and BDOs at San Francisco International Airport that work for Covenant Aviation Security, LLC (CAS).
eds invite applicants for SFO security jobs / Airport and city officials urge stay of citizenship requirement
ReplyDeleteMay 06, 2002|By Jim Doyle, Chronicle Staff Writer
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Federal officials plan to accept online applications today for security screener jobs at San Francisco International Airport and as many as eight other airports nationwide.
But San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and airport officials are protesting the federal government's requirement that airport security workers be U.S. citizens. SFO is lobbying to be one of five airports nationwide to opt out of federalizing its private-screener workforce.
As many as 80 percent of SFO's 800 screeners, who check passengers and their carry-on bags for weapons and other contraband, could lose their jobs under the federal program because they are not citizens. The vast majority of SFO's screeners are Filipinos.
This article show you all tso's how all started .we are in 2001 and the fed asking people to apply for a federal job in security @SFO then ...you know what happened we sold to Covenant aviation security before even we get to know the details.
ReplyDeletePs: more articles about that sweet deal called the SPP one has just to check the press release of 2001
Some who were there, myself included, remember those days. And, it was found, the previous screeners who were Not CAS Currently it was they who made the SEIU Contract with CAS...was found invalid. During the beginning time we were working 'without' contract. IT was Turbulent. There was an attempt by screeners, without money or success, to create their own union. Without money, backing, knowledge, etc. not much can be accomplished when dealing with legal issues. It doesn't help that the employees do not want to do the 'work of the Union' which would be required, as that is what a Union is all about.
ReplyDeleteSo for a long time we were without a Union at all.
During this time Screeners shifts were changed randomly. Not with Bidding. Groups of us were told, 'as of tomorrow you will be coming in at 1500 start time'. When our original start time was 1200. We were handed slips of paper with our new location, time, days off. We were not 'asked' what bid slots we wanted. There were a lot things management did and Can do when you do NOT have a Written Contract As the Union has helped us get and keep.
A lot of you do not know or remember this, a lot of you were not here. Maybe a lot do not care.
We bid, yes it has been screwed up the last couple of times, But, WE BID and make choices in how we spend our work time and where. My friends who also work security Are Told When to come to work, what days off they will have...and that changes every two months or so. Not on a scheduled basis, almost on a whim. As fitting a NON Union company. Several lost their Vacations which had been planned in advance...because they were told, too bad, they had to show up because they didn't have enough coverage.
I may not like CAS incompetence, or their disregard for their employees, but it is a known enemy. We will have similar problems with ANY employer, Federal or Private...just ask around. At least we know How this animal behaves and how to deal with them.
One thing I do wonder? Will those of us here even pretend to be any more professional than we do at present? Some of us who scream the loudest at the 'behavior' or our employer would not like it if a much 'tougher' and stricter one came along. An Employer who didn't let us get away with half of the loafing at the checkpoints...the texting behind the X-ray and Mag.