Security screeners at Newark Liberty Airport are failing miserably by not properly patting-down fliers and failing to confiscate prohibited items from carry-on bags, according to an internal Transportation Security Administration report.
Newark-based TSA officers followed proper patdown procedures only a dismal 16.7 percent of the time and removed banned items from baggage, such as shampoo bottles larger than 3 ounces, just 25 percent of the time, auditors found.
The review, conducted by undercover TSA employees assigned to other airports, also found the screeners consistently failed to tell fliers they could choose a patdown rather than a full-body electric scan, according to The Star-Ledger, which first reported on the findings.
The TSA is doing a complete overhaul of security at the airport in the wake of embarrassing security lapses — including screeners sleeping on the job and travelers being able to completely evade checkpoints.
“[The] evaluation is designed to be a ‘snapshot in time’ to assess various areas of passenger interaction,” said TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein. “TSA uses the results as a guide to educate its workforce on areas where its employees are strong and areas where it can improve.”
It’s unclear what exact procedures in the pat-downs the TSA officer failed to perform.
Rather than trying to sneak in inert bombs or guns, the evaluators tested the screeners on catching innocuous, but banned items, like liquid containers.
The report highlights the need for more training, said Mecca Scott, a former Newark screener who now works for the Association of Federal Government Employees, which represents 44,000 screeners nationwide.
“With the repetitiveness of the job and the seriousness of the job, training could be expanded,” she said. “They need to maintain a certain amount of training throughout their careers and need refresher courses and things of that nature.”
None of the officers found lacking will be severely disciplined, Scott said.