McKinney urges Secretary
Mineta to Maintain Diversity of Airport Security
Personnel
April 24, 2002
The Honorable Norman Mineta
Secretary of Transportation
Department of Transportation
400 Seventh Street, SW
Washington, DC 20590
Dear Mr. Secretary:
Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule
to speak with me during your recent visit to the
Capitol. I write to you today to follow up on
our conversation regarding the federalization
of airport security personnel. First and foremost,
I want to commend the strong leadership you have
provided this nation in the months following the
attacks on September 11, 2001.
Since the creation of the Transportation Safety
Administration in November of 2001, I have had
great concerns over the hiring practices being
implemented with the new security personnel. It
is my understanding the Transportation Safety
Administration will hire and deploy thousands
of security screeners and supervisors at 429 airports
across the United States over the next year. That
would mean the employment of an additional 30,000
personnel at our airports. It is for this reason,
I am requesting the Transportation Safety Administration
to take great pains to preserve the jobs of those
already in the airport security workforce.
As you know, the vast majority of the people
currently hired in these positions are women and
men of color. I would hate for them to lose their
jobs just as the workforce experiences pay and
training improvements.
I look forward to your response of my inquiry.
If you should have any questions, please do not
hesitate to contact me directly at (202)-225-1605.
Thank you for you commitment to the safety of
our airports and air travel.
Sincerely,
Cynthia McKinney
Member of Congress
CAM/jmr
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