2026-03-10T18:00:00-0400 / CBS新闻
华盛顿 — 根据哥伦比亚广播公司新闻独家获得的美国运输安全管理局（TSA）内部统计数据，在国土安全部持续停摆期间，机场安检人员的无计划缺勤人数已翻倍，自停摆开始以来已有超过300名员工离职。
在一些机场，TSA人员的缺勤率已攀升至两位数百分比，包括休斯顿霍比机场有半数安检人员缺勤，这导致安检运营压力增大，进而造成安检队伍延长。
从运输安全管理局官员处获得的统计数据显示，全国范围内一线安检人员的无计划缺勤率在停摆期间平均上升至6%，而在政府资金中断前这一比例约为2%。
内部数据显示，几天内全国缺勤率显著更高。2月23日全国最高缺勤率达到9%，3月6日和7日分别为8%和7%。
这种增长发生在约5万名TSA员工自2月14日开始的国土安全部资金中断期间被要求无薪工作的背景下。
在个别机场，病假缺勤率上升更为急剧。在休斯顿霍比机场，3月8日53%的安检人员缺勤，次日为47%——导致在这两天期间几乎一半的计划在岗人员未到岗。
在约翰·F·肯尼迪国际机场，TSA安检人员在停摆期间平均缺勤率为21%，在主要机场中最高。其他受严重影响的枢纽包括哈茨菲尔德-杰克逊亚特兰大国际机场（19%）、休斯顿威廉·P·霍比机场（18%）、路易斯·阿姆斯特朗新奥尔良国际机场（14%）和匹兹堡国际机场（13%）。
极端天气事件加剧了这些数字。例如，根据数据，2月23日一场重大暴风雪期间，JFK机场77%的安检人员和纽瓦克自由国际机场53%的安检人员缺勤。
TSA自停摆开始已流失300多名员工
停摆还加速了人员流失。2月14日至3月9日期间，TSA记录了305起员工离职，由于员工需要接受4至6个月的培训才能独立在安检点工作，因此替换这些人员可能需要数月时间。
TSA官员警告说，长期资金缺口可能对安检人员队伍产生持久影响，因为难以负担基本开支的员工可能会完全离职。
幕后，国土安全部官员担心，停摆持续时间越长，更多TSA员工离职的风险就越大，从而加剧人员短缺，超出眼前的危机。官员们警告称，反复出现的停摆中断工资发放，持续降低了该工作的吸引力，从长远来看进一步削弱了联邦政府的招聘和留任努力。
“这对TSA士气造成了巨大打击，”前TSA局长约翰·皮斯托莱告诉CBS新闻，他补充说，他担心对手可能会利用“因TSA出勤人数减少而出现的可感知脆弱性”，特别是随着机场安检队伍延长。
皮斯托莱还警告说，长期停摆可能对员工队伍产生永久性影响。他指出，2025年停摆期间，TSA“因无法获得收入而失去了近1100名安检人员”。他表示，如果当前僵局持续，反复停摆可能会使招聘新安检人员变得更加困难，因为求职者可能会质疑接受一份可能需要无薪工作的岗位。
数十个“热点”威胁全国安检运营速度
该机构还追踪了运营“热点”——即人员短缺可能减缓安检运营的情况。休斯顿在停摆期间记录了44起此类事件，其次是新奥尔良（35起）和亚特兰大（32起）。全国范围内，3月8日单日最高热点数量达到87起。
停摆期间旅行需求持续上升，意味着更少的安检人员需要筛查更多乘客。
TSA官员表示，人员短缺迫使一些城市的管理人员合并安检点或减少安检通道，在安检人员筛查增长的乘客量时，增加了旅客的等待时间。
停摆还扰乱了一些快速通道旅客项目。上个月，国土安全部最初表示将暂停TSA快速安检计划（PreCheck），但很快改变立场，继续开放该项目，称将按机场管理运营。然而，美国海关与边境保护局（CBP）的全球入境计划（Global Entry）因CBP官员被重新分配到常规旅客处理工作而暂停。
首次全额未发工资将于周五到来
TSA安检人员也正面临僵局中的一个关键财务里程碑：首次全额未发工资预计将于周五到来，这引发了如果停摆持续，更多员工可能缺勤的担忧。
国土安全部发言人在给CBS新闻的一份声明中表示，TSA员工被迫“近六个月内第三次”无薪工作，“停摆持续时间越长，我们爱国的安检人员及其家庭面临的经济困难就越大，从而导致更多人员问题和旅客更长的等待时间。”
“现在是民主党结束这些政治游戏，支付我们的TSA官员工资并重新开放国土安全部的时候了，”发言人补充道。
安检点的人员压力与全国各地部分机场增加的延误和更长的安检队伍同时发生。自2月14日停摆开始以来，TSA安检人员一直无薪工作，安检人员持续缺勤加剧了安检点的人员短缺。
根据哥伦比亚广播公司新闻此前报道，在休斯顿威廉·P·霍比机场，3月8日安检等待时间延长至3个多小时，促使旅客被建议提前4至5小时到达机场。
与此同时，新奥尔良机场官员警告乘客至少提前3小时到达，此前一些旅客因安检队伍过长而错过航班；哈茨菲尔德-杰克逊亚特兰大国际机场官员也警告称，由于人员短缺，可能出现更长时间的等待。
从新奥尔良出发的旅客莉亚·特纳说，她和家人因排队等待安检4小时而错过航班。
旅客艾伦·考德威尔告诉CBS新闻：“三周前我来参加狂欢节时没有问题，”她补充道，“这太离谱了。”
春假临近，仍未达成资金协议
航空业官员警告称，除非国会达成协议恢复国土安全部资金，否则春季假期旅行可能会加剧延误。
在2018-2019年政府停摆期间（美国历史上最长的停摆），哥伦比亚广播公司新闻曾报道，无计划缺勤率在1月中旬攀升至近8%，最终在某些日子达到约10%，引发对安检人员是否能跟上旅行需求的担忧。
白宫新闻秘书卡罗琳·莱维特周二表示，特朗普总统“希望国土安全部……获得全额资金并完全重新开放”，并敦促受停摆影响的美国人“致电你们的民主党国会议员，告诉他们为国土安全部提供资金。”
参议院少数党领袖查克·舒默和参议员布莱恩·沙茨周二表示，国土安全部资金谈判陷入停滞，因为特朗普政府未就移民执法机构改革进行实质性谈判。
在每周新闻发布会上，舒默表示民主党人曾提供共和党人通过将部分国土安全部机构（包括TSA、联邦紧急事务管理局、网络安全和基础设施安全局以及美国海岸警卫队）与有争议的美国移民和海关执法局及美国海关和边境保护局的资金分开，从而资助这些机构的机会。
舒默称共和党人阻止了这一努力。
“上周四，我们给了他们一个资助TSA和其他国土安全部机构的机会，”舒默说，“以布里特参议员为首的参议院共和党人阻止了默里参议员试图通过该法案的努力。”
“我们存在严重分歧，但正在就ICE和CBP进行持续谈判，”沙茨说，“所以让我们将范围缩小到这些问题，并为政府其他部分提供资金。”
他补充说，如果法案排除移民执法内容，民主党人将支持该法案。
“他们应该走上讲台，一致同意开放海岸警卫队、TSA，为FEMA和CISA提供资金，”沙茨说，“我保证不会有民主党反对者。”
本报告由山下清司、克里斯·范·克莱夫和莎拉·普洛斯撰稿。
TSA absences double during shutdown, 300 officers quit, as some airports see longer security lines
2026-03-10T18:00:00-0400 / CBS News
Washington — Unscheduled absences among airport security officers have more than doubled during the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown, with more than 300 employees leaving the agency since the start of the DHS shutdown, according to internal TSA statistics obtained exclusively by CBS News.
TSA officer call-out rates have climbed into double-digit percentages at some airports, including half the officers at Houston’s Hobby Airport, straining screening operations and contributing to longer security lines.
Statistics obtained from Transportation Security Administration officials show the nationwide callout rate — unscheduled absences by frontline officers — has risen to an average of 6% during the shutdown, compared with about 2% before government funding lapsed.
Several days saw significantly higher national absence rates. The highest nationwide rate reached 9% on Feb. 23, followed by 8% on March 6 and 7% on March 9, according to the internal data.
The increase comes as roughly 50,000 TSA employees are being required to work without pay during the DHS funding lapse that began Feb. 14.
At individual airports, sick outs have climbed even more sharply. At Houston’s Hobby Airport, 53% of officers called out on March 8, with 47% calling out the following day – resulting in nearly half of scheduled officers not reporting to work during the two-day stretch.
At John F. Kennedy International Airport, TSA officers averaged a 21% absence rate during the shutdown, the highest among major airports. Other heavily affected hubs included Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (19%), William P. Hobby Airport in Houston (18%), Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (14%) and Pittsburgh International Airport (13%).
Those figures were compounded by extreme weather events. For example, 77% of officers at JFK and 53% at Newark Liberty International Airport called out on Feb. 23 during a major blizzard, according to the data.
TSA has lost more than 300 employees since shutdown began
The shutdown has also accelerated departures from the workforce. TSA recorded 305 employee separations between Feb. 14 and March 9, and it can take months to replace those officers because of the four to six months of training required before employees are able to work independently at checkpoints.
TSA officials warn that prolonged funding gaps can have lasting effects on the screening workforce because employees who are struggling to cover basic expenses may leave the job entirely.
Behind the scenes, DHS officials worry that the longer the shutdown lasts, the greater the risk that more TSA employees will leave, worsening staffing shortages beyond the immediate crisis. Officials warn that repeated shutdowns interrupting pay continue to make the job less attractive, further undermining recruitment and retention efforts by the federal government over the long term.
“It’s a huge morale hit for TSA,” former TSA Administrator John Pistole told CBS News, adding that he worries adversaries could try to exploit “a perceived vulnerability because there’s not as many people at TSA showing up for work,” particularly as airport security lines grow longer.
Pistole also warned that extended shutdowns can have permanent and lasting effects on the workforce. After the 2025 shutdown, he noted, TSA “lost nearly 1,100 security officers who resigned because they had to have income and they weren’t being paid.” If the current standoff drags on, he said, repeated shutdowns could make it harder to recruit new officers, since applicants may question taking a job where they might have to work without pay.
Dozens of “hotspots” threaten to slow checkpoint security operations nationwide
The agency has also tracked operational “hotspots” — incidents where staffing shortages threaten to slow checkpoint operations. Houston recorded 44 such incidents during the shutdown, followed by New Orleans with 35 and Atlanta with 32. Nationwide, the highest single-day count reached 87 hotspots on March 8.
Travel demand has continued to rise during the shutdown, meaning fewer officers are screening more passengers.
TSA officials say the staffing shortages have forced managers in some cities to consolidate checkpoints or reduce screening lanes, increasing wait times for travelers while remaining officers screen growing passenger volumes.
The shutdown has also disrupted some expedited traveler programs. Last month, DHS initially said it would suspend TSA PreCheck before quickly reversing course and keeping the program open, saying operations would be managed airport by airport. However, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Global Entry program was suspended as CBP officers were reassigned to regular passenger processing.
First full missed TSA paychecks to come Friday
TSA officers are also approaching a key financial milestone in the standoff: the first full missed paycheck is expected Friday, raising concerns that more employees could call out if the shutdown drags on.
In a statement to CBS News, a DHS spokesperson wrote that TSA employees were being forced to work without pay “for the THIRD time in nearly six months,” adding, “the longer this shutdown drags on, the more financial hardship our patriotic officers and their families face, leading to more staffing issues and longer wait times for travelers.”
“It’s time for Democrats to end these political games, pay our TSA officers, and re-open DHS,” the spokesperson added.
The staffing strain at TSA checkpoints has coincided with increasing airport delays and long security lines at some airports across the country. TSA officers have been working without pay since the shutdown began on Feb. 14, and continued absences among screeners have strained checkpoint staffing.
At Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport, security wait times stretched to more than three hours on March 8, prompting travelers to be advised to arrive four to five hours before flights, CBS News previously reported.
Meanwhile in New Orleans, airport officials warned passengers to arrive at least three hours early after some travelers missed flights due to long TSA lines, while officials at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport also cautioned that extended waits were possible as staffing shortages persist.
Leah Turney, who was traveling out of New Orleans, said she and her family missed their flights because of the long lines.
“We were waiting in TSA just to get to security for four hours,” she said.
Traveler Ellen Caldwell told CBS News, “I was here three weeks ago for Mardi gras, and it was no problem,” adding, “This is insane.”
With spring break approaching, no funding deal in sight
Airline industry officials have warned that heavy spring break travel could worsen delays unless Congress reaches a deal to restore Department of Homeland Security funding.
During the 2018–2019 government shutdown — the longest in U.S. history — CBS News reported that unscheduled absences climbed to nearly 8% by mid-January, eventually peaking to around 10% of officers on some days as workers went without pay, raising concerns about whether checkpoint staffing could keep up with travel demand.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that President Trump “wants the Department of Homeland Security … to be fully funded and fully reopened,” and she urged Americans affected by the shutdown to “call your Democrat member of Congress and tell them to fund the Department of Homeland Security.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Brian Schatz said Tuesday that negotiations over funding the Department of Homeland Security have stalled because the Trump administration has not engaged in substantive talks over reforms to immigration enforcement agencies.
Speaking at their weekly press conference, Schumer said Democrats had offered Republicans a chance to fund several DHS agencies — including the TSA, FEMA, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the United States Coast Guard — by separating them from disputed funding for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Schumer said Republicans blocked that effort.
“Last week, Thursday, we gave them a chance to fund TSA and other DHS agencies,” Schumer said. “Senate Republicans led by Senator Britt blocked Senator Murray’s attempt to pass the bill through.”
“We are in a deep disagreement, but an ongoing negotiation about ICE and CBP,” Schatz said. “So let’s narrow it to just that and fund the rest of the government.”
He added that Democrats would throw their support behind a bill funding those agencies if it excluded immigration enforcement.
“They should walk onto the floor and offer unanimous consent to open the Coast Guard, to open TSA, to fund FEMA, to fund CISA,” Schatz said. “I guarantee you there will not be a Democratic objector.”
Seiji Yamashita, Kris Van Cleave and Sarah Ploss contributed to this report.
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