Security checkpoint staff at Vancouver International Airport have been rallying at the terminal building for better working conditions on the job.
Workers and their union say the job is stressful and not well compensated, with excess bureacracy making problems even worse.
The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) brought in a new third-party contractor, Paladin Security Services, to handle security staffing at YVR’s checkpoints last year. Workers say their new boss has only made conditions worse.
“[We] believe that the system is broken beyond redemption. In the last 10 months, CATSA has been manipulating conditions from behind the scenes, wasting taxpayer dollars and violating contracts made in good faith,” the International Association of Machinists and Airport Workers (IAMAW) said in a recent news release.
Workers who spoke to Daily Hive said rules at the airport security checkpoints are strict. They’re not allowed to go on a bathroom break until they’re relieved by another staff member. In practice, that sometimes means waiting five hours to use the bathroom.
Daily Hive is protecting the workers’ identity because they could lose their jobs by speaking to the media.
When a worker finally goes on break, their pay is docked if they are seconds or minutes late from coming back, they said.
“Sometimes a passenger stops us to ask a question while we’re on our break. And if we’re late coming back that gets deducted from our pay,” one worker told Daily Hive.
Security screeners have spoken out before about poor working conditions in the airports they serve, speaking of delaying their bathroom breaks and being made to work at a breakneck pace.
Instead of improving workflow, they say CATSA and Paladin have only increased bureaucracy. The workers and their union are speaking out over new bilingual facilitator positions, which are new hires paid about $20,000 more annually than screeners themselves to supervise security checkpoints.
“These expenditures have come at a cost for the very people who are responsible for carrying out security duties at the airport,” IAMAW said.
CATSA spokesperson Dominique Huras told Daily Hive that the facilitator roles were launched to enhance the client experience and ensure that passengers receive barrier-free service.
“Facilitators are not supervisors, nor are they certified screening officers, and they do not make decisions on the security screening of passengers. Existing screening officer customer service responsibilities remain unchanged.”
The only accepted languages for bilingual supervisors are English and French. Security screeners who are bilingual in English and another language are not eligible for the position.
Screeners want to be federal government employees
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The workers Daily Hive spoke with say they’re tired of their employer trying to profit from its government contract off their backs.
“Screening officers should be direct employees of the federal government under the supervision of Transport Canada,” IAMAW said. “Taxpayers would benefit from the abolition of CATSA, along with the profiteering of third party contractors such as Paladin.”
CATSA, however, said it does not expect to change its existing third-party screening model.
Greg Conlan, Paladin’s vice president of the Pacific region, told Daily Hive that the company is aware of employees’ concerns and is addressing them in collective bargaining with IAMAW.
“Paladin Airport Security Services is committed to providing professional and effective security screening for air travellers and their belongings. We strive to provide a positive work culture in the ongoing effort to serve all those who rely on us in our public safety mandate.”
Security screening officers at YVR are rallying on their own time. There is currently no job action happening, and security lines are moving normally.