TSA officers will no longer be allowed to sit on the job. The Transportation Security Administration announced that it is removing chairs from airport checkpoints nationwide, saying the policy change is meant to keep officers “alert.” “This welcome change reinforces both our security pos ture and our commitment to hospitality by having these officers on their feet and alert,” a TSA spokesperson said. “All officers must meet fitness for duty requirements to be capable of performing their vital national security function while simultaneously creating a welcoming and professional environment for travelers.” The American Federation of Government Employees Council, the union representing more than 40,000 TSA officers, criticized the decision and said it was not consulted before the announcement. “These chairs serve as basic ergonomic and safety support for officers that stand and walk on hard surfaces all day,” the union said in a statement. “TSA is treating this matter like it is a privilege it is not; it is basic safety and common decency for the workforce.”  The union argued that forcing document checkers to stand for hours while screening passengers at the busiest airports in the country defies standard workplace safety and vowed to “aggressively” fight the change. “This disregard for employee rights and safety is an example of a broad pattern of TSA’s true consideration of the employees who keep our nation safe,” it wrote. “This is an opportune time to meet with members and non-members alike to tell and show them the importance of joining this union to form our collective resistance against this regime that is literally attempting to take out our workforce through whichever means possible.” It has been a tumultuous year for the TSA and its workers. TSA officers stopped receiving paychecks when the government partially shut down on Feb. 14, leading to longer lines for travelers at airport security checkpoints across the country as hundreds of officers quit their jobs. They were finally paid at the end of March after an executive order from President Donald Trump, and the Department of Homeland Security reopened on April 30 at the conclusion of the 75-day shutdown. ...read more read less