TSA union leaders at Atlanta's airport speak out on shutdown

The tension at the world's busiest airport reached a boiling point today, Monday, March 16, 2026, as Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers missed their first full paycheck since the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was partially shut down on February 14. Leaders from AFGE Local 554, the union representing Atlanta’s TSA officers, held a press conference outside the North Terminal. Their message was blunt: essential workers are being used as "political footballs" in a funding dispute over immigration enforcement that has now dragged into its second month.