CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — On what is usually one of the busiest days to travel through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the lines Sunday were mostly a breeze.
Channel 2’s Bryan Mims was at the airport where the short lines come as Transportation Security Administration employees await their first paychecks after weeks of going without.
At the airport, a TSA employee and union representative warned that the situation isn’t over yet, and things may not fully level out for at least a week.
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Still, while lines were lengthy even early on Sunday morning, wait times were down.
After 8 a.m., wait times shrunk down to about 10 minutes.
Marianne Ferraro, heading to Ohio, arrived four hours early, only to get a happy shock.
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“I come up here and it’s like a ghost town,” Ferraro told Channel 2 Action News. “I’m thrilled, it’s great.”
While the Sunday lines were smooth, TSA Union Rep. George Borek told Mims he doesn’t think the situation is truly resolved.
“I don’t think it’s over because, certainly, until the Department of Homeland Security funds us, it’s not gonna be over,” Borek said. “We’re still in furlough status.”
Borek is a full-time TSA agent and represents his coworkers in the local union.
While President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday to pay TSA employees immediately, and give them weeks of backpay, their return to duty won’t happen overnight.
“Coming in today, there’s not the normal amount of officers that we normally see,” Borek said. “We are probably at a bare minimum as we speak today, from the morning shift.”
Until checks are in bank accounts, Borek said staffing could remain an issue.
He said the quick lines at the Atlanta airport were an anomaly, with Sunday usually one of the busiest days at the airport.
“I think seeing on the news and television for weeks and weeks, people are truly adjusting what they’re doing,” Borek said.
The union representative said he expects it to take at least a week before things level out and that it’s still spring break season, which could mean more pressure on the airport.
Borek said Congress needs to agree on a bill to end the shutdown.
Due to the executive order signed by the president, TSA workers could get paid as early as tomorrow.
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