When you think of Tampa International Airport, a few familiar sights come to mind: Phoebe — the giant flamingo sculpture, the automated trams, and the usual shuffle through security.
It’s a routine most travelers know by heart: take off your shoes and pull out your laptop — all while transportation security officers guide people to their departure gates.
Because these officers are federal employees, they have standard government benefits and pensions. But starting next May, Tampa’s Transportation Security Administration officers will be federal employees no longer.
Tampa International will be among the first in the country to hand over its security checkpoints and screening equipment to a private company under a new TSA program called Gold Plus.
While airport officials say the change is necessary to keep security running smoothly, it’s sparked a debate in the community about what this means for local workers and their families.
The shutdown problem
Officials say the main reason behind the move comes down to government shutdowns. When Congress enters a budget standoff and funds freeze, federal TSA officers are still required to work, but don’t get paid until the shutdown ends.
By moving to a private contractor, security workers will get regular paychecks that are tied to a company budget instead of deliberating lawmakers.
Just down the road, Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport has used a private security model for the last 12 years, and airport officials there say it works well.
ALSO READ: Some airports are using private screeners instead of TSA. Sarasota's is one of them
"We've had great success with that private program," said Josh Talkington, the director of communications for Sarasota-Bradenton. It’s one of 20 airports across the U.S. taking part in the Screening Partnership Program.
Talkington said that during past government shutdowns, their security staff never missed a paycheck because their compensation didn’t rely on federal funding.
"They don't have those staffing challenges because their staff is fully paid. There's no disruption in their pay throughout that cycle," Talkington said.
He added that taking the financial stress away makes a big difference for travelers, too.
"You could just imagine when your security team is not missing out on paychecks, the interaction for passengers going through that checkpoint is probably a lot different than the interaction when you're going through a checkpoint when there's added stress with not bringing home a paycheck," Talkington said.
What makes 'Gold+' different
There is a key difference between Sarasota’s SPP and Tampa’s Gold Plus Program. In Sarasota, private workers use federal TSA equipment.
But with Gold Plus, the private company will actually buy and manage the screening technology itself, using tools like AI to try and cut down wait times.
ALSO READ: TSA's new 'Gold+' program looks to increase private security screening at airports
That specific change is prompting concern for the American Federation of Government Employees, the union that represents 47,000 TSA officers across the country. Union leaders see the move as a way to cut federal jobs and benefits.
For Chris Finlay, the president of the local union chapter, the situation hits close to home. Over a decade ago, he was working as a federal TSA officer at Sanford International Airport when that facility decided to make security private.
"I’ve been in the position of the Tampa employees, where they are being brought into a town hall... and they're being told that the airport authority has decided that they want to opt into a privatization model," Finlay said.
Tampa International officials have made it clear that current officers will get the first right of refusal for the new private jobs, meaning no one who wants to stay will be left without an offer.
But Finlay is worried about what happens after the transition.
When Sanford International went private, he chose to transfer to Orlando to stay with the federal government — but he said his parents, who also worked for the TSA, took the job offers because the company promised to match their pay.
"They did match their pay for three weeks, and then, one by one, they took the TSA holdovers — the people who stayed — and said, ‘we no longer can match your pay, so sorry.’ And I'm afraid that's what's going to happen now to these employees who work here," Finlay said.
The human cost
The change will leave around 800 local TSA workers facing a choice. They can sign on with the private contractor, take an early retirement package if they qualify, or look for a federal TSA job elsewhere.
But Finlay points out that transferring is not easy for everyone. The closest federal airport is St. Pete-Clearwater, which is much smaller and has very few openings.
"These are people. They're not machines," Finlay said. "They have lives. They have things going on."
The union also questions why the government is paying a private company to bring in technology rather than just upgrading the federal agency directly.
"You know who pays the contract company? The federal government," Finlay said. "Why doesn't the federal government just put out the screening equipment to begin with? Why are we doing TSA with extra steps? To me, that is the biggest betrayal to that workforce, who makes this airport so great."
The union's national officials echo those concerns.
“Make no mistake – this is a major departure and step backwards from the aviation screening security system that Congress created in the wake of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks in 2001 and the deadly bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland in 1988,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said.
“Changes of this magnitude should not be made behind closed doors without the input of Congress, the flying public, the local airport authorities, and TSA employees themselves,” he added.
The union also said there are simpler ways to protect worker pay during shutdowns without turning to private corporations. They have been pushing for legislation that would keep essential employees paid during budget standoffs, or change how the TSA is funded.
"They say private contractors, they get paid throughout a lapse in appropriation, and that's true. That's because their budget is done a year in advance. Why don't we fund TSA a year in advance?" Finlay asked.
"There are answers to this without upending hundreds of people's lives in the name of money, which is what this is."
The targeted date for the change is May 31, 2027.
