Unpaid TSA Officers Face Financial Hardships Amid Government Shutdown

Sat Mar 21 2026 13:23:39 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents are working without pay due to an ongoing government funding lapse, causing severe financial strains and staffing shortages at airports nationwide.

As TSA agents continue to work unpaid during the third government shutdown in six months, they face severe financial pressures, illustrated by rising resignations and high absenteeism rates. Voices from within the agency reveal deteriorating morale, indicating a potential long-term crisis for airport security staffing. The public is feeling the effects through prolonged wait times and operational disruptions, leading to calls for intervention from Congress.

Eviction notices. Vehicle repossessions. Empty refrigerators and overdrawn bank accounts.

Union leaders and federal officials say these are just some of the financial pressures Transportation Security Administration agents are facing during an ongoing government funding lapse — the third shutdown in less than six months that has forced the officers who screen airport passengers and luggage to keep working without pay.

The public is experiencing long wait times at some airports as more TSA officers take time off to earn money on the side or cut back on expenses. At least 376 have quit their jobs altogether since the shutdown began on Valentine’s Day, according to the Department of Homeland Security, exacerbating staff turnover at an agency that historically has had some of the U.S. government’s highest attrition and lowest employee morale.

“It’s just exhausting. Every day it just feels like this weight gets heavier and heavier on us,” Cameron Cochems, a local TSA union leader in Boise, Idaho, told The Associated Press.

Cochems, who has worked as a TSA agent for more than four years and is vice president of his regional American Federation of Government Employees chapter, said the number of resignations likely doesn’t fully capture the extent of the agency’s personnel challenges. He thinks many more officers would already have walked away in a stronger job market.

The House Committee on Homeland Security has scheduled a hearing to review the shutdown’s impact on the TSA, which has been plagued by low morale and staffing difficulties. A GAO report highlighted that TSA agents face issues including low pay and poor work-life balance, suggesting that unless these problems are addressed, the agency could continue to experience high attrition rates.

As TSA officers missed their first full paycheck last weekend, absences are climbing nationwide, leading to further operational strain. Agents are urged to consider securing side jobs to afford basic necessities, highlighting a troubling pattern where essential workers struggle to meet their financial obligations.

With ongoing delays and absenteeism becoming commonplace, travelers are advised to brace for unpredictable experiences at airport security checkpoints as the shutdown lingers.