TSA wait times were exceeding one hour Monday morning. ATLANTA — Extremely long security lines have been reported at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on Monday morning. Early Monday morning, wait times for all three Domestic Terminal checkpoints -- Main, North and South -- were running at more than one hour. By 2:30 p.m., wait times had decreased to 30-to-45 minutes at the Main Checkpoint. Wait times at the North and South checkpoints had been reduced to between 15-and-30 minutes. One bright spot was the International Terminal, where wait times were listed at between 15-and-30 minutes all day long. Airport officials are advising that passengers arrive at the security checkpoints at least two hours before their scheduled departure time. However, with the extended lines, adding more time would be advised. Why is there a long wait time at the airport? Last week, the Transportation Security Administration insisted that long wait times being reported by news outlets around the nation were not the result of callouts by TSA employees due to the federal shutdown. However, as the partial government closure rolls into its 24th day TSA says the amount of unscheduled absences has more than doubled from this day last year. A Transportation Security Administration spokesperson told 11Alive on Monday that the agency "experienced a national rate of 7.6 percent of unscheduled absences compared to a 3.2 percent rate one year ago, Monday, January 15, 2018." In addition, a TSA statement was released that pointed out that security standards would remain uncompromised across the nation. "TSA men and women across the country continue to report for work at our nations airports to secure aviation. From passengers to airport personnel, and others making their way through terminals across the country, the kind of words of support have not gone without notice or impact," the statement said. RELATED | Some TSA employees calling off sick during federal shutdown In addition, TSA officials have been insisting that callouts by TSA workers have not limited the effectiveness of the TSA's mission since the beginning of the federal shutdown on December 22. TSA workers are considered "essential employees" and as such, have been forced to work despite not being paid since the beginning of the federal shutdown. On Monday, air traffic controllers joined the crowds in the airport lobby, holding up signs and handing out pamphlets urging people to talk to their lawmakers. One air traffic controller in Atlanta, Dan McCabe says the job is already stressful enough. Now, they are not getting paid. "When you're at work, you're thinking about how to keep airplanes separated. Now you're thinking about keeping planes separated and keeping your medical bills paid for, keeping your car paid for, so it's very stressful," McCabe said. He says politicians in Washington, who are still collecting their paychecks, have forgotten about them. "This is no longer a political debate, it's a human issue," McCabe said. Officials said that more than 51,000 TSA officers remain on the job, though many have called off work since the federal shutdown started. Some workers were calling out simply because they could not afford to pay for childcare or to make ends meet in order to afford to go to work. Octavius Miller, a TSA employee at Hartsfield-Jackson, said he is taking out a short-term loan to make ends meet and support his infant daughter during this period. “When we do things like this for political show-boating, I feel like the people become pawns, and I feel like me and my coworkers have become pawns in this game,” Miller said. “I have a lot of responsibilities I have to take care of.” He lives about 45 minutes from the airport and said he keeps working because he wants to make sure he has a job at the end of the shutdown. What is the wait time at Atlanta's airport?<doc-sep>Passengers at the nation’s busiest airport are feeling the pinch of the government shutdown and it’s coming in the forms of long security lines. Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is warning passengers to give themselves at least three hours to clear security. #ATL is experiencing longer than usual wait times during peak travel. Please plan ahead and give yourself 3 hours to clear security. ✈️ — Atlanta Airport (@ATLairport) January 14, 2019 The notice comes as the government shutdown has agents with the Transportation Security Administration on the job but without pay. As a result, the agency is experiencing a higher-than-normal absentee rate. Michael Bilello, a spokesperson for the TSA, said the agency’s unscheduled absentee rate Monday was 6.8 percent compared to 2.5 percent one year ago on the same day. Issues with screenings have prompted several airports – including Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Miami International Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson – to close terminals and consolidate security checkpoints. Personnel is being relocated to help assist in airports with staffing shortages. “TSA Federal Security Directors, in concert with the airport and servicing airlines will announce when lane closures occur so passengers can plan accordingly,” Bilello said. “TSA will reallocate screening officers on a national basis to meet staffing shortages that cannot be addressed locally. “For questions about terminal closings, travelers should seek current airline and airport information before arriving at the airport,” he added. Alabama’s busiest airport, Birmingham’s Shuttlesworth International, is not reporting extended delays. We want to take time and say thank you to all of the @TSA and @FAANews employees, here @BHMAirport. We appreciate your hard work and service to the Birmingham community! pic.twitter.com/77LboQ8L2c — Shuttlesworth Int'l (@BHMAirport) January 14, 2019 The government shutdown Dec. 22, shuttering many operations of the departments of Homeland Security, Justice, Interior, State and Housing and Urban Development. About 800,000 federal employees are either furloughed without pay or at work but not receiving a paycheck until the shutdown ends.<doc-sep>
Jeff Martin Associated Press ATLANTA — It was taking more than an hour for passengers to get through domestic checkpoints at the world's busiest airport in Atlanta on Monday, the first business day after security screeners missed paychecks for the first time due to partial government shutdown. No-shows among screeners across the nation soared Monday morning, with a national rate of 7.6 unscheduled absences Monday morning, a Transportation Security Administration spokesman said. That compares to 3.2 percent for this time one year ago, TSA spokesman Thomas Kelly said in a statement to the Associated Press. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport reported the lengthy wait times on its website Monday morning, showing the long waits at all three checkpoints in the domestic terminal. Callers to the Transportation Security Administration's media relations line Monday heard a recorded message saying employees were unable to answer phone calls due to a lapse in federal funding. Atlanta's wait times stretched well beyond what the TSA says most passengers have endured since the shutdown began. The recorded message said that 99.9 percent of passengers nationally waited less than 30 minutes to get through security on Friday, and 95 percent waited less than 15 minutes. The message adds that security standards "remain uncompromised" at the nation's airports. Still, airports are having to make adjustments. Miami International Airport closed one of its terminals for part of Saturday and Sunday because many TSA workers as usual were calling in sick. In Atlanta, Monday's long wait times come with less than three weeks remaining before the city hosts one of the world's biggest sporting events. The Super Bowl, scheduled for Feb. 3, is expected to bring hordes of travelers to Atlanta for the game and days of concerts and related events. Govt. shutdown hits fed employees in Michigan Gov't shutdown: 23 questions you may have Trams at DTW out of service until April The statement from TSA Monday attributed the long waits in Atlanta to "anticipated high volume." "TSA, airport authorities and airlines will continue to work closely to ensure resources are optimized, efforts to consolidate operations are actively managed, and screening and security are never compromised," Kelly, the TSA spokesman, said via email. Airport officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.