Aviation Security: Transportation Security Administration Could Further Improve Officer Engagement
Fast Facts
TSA's nearly 50,000 officers play an important role in keeping potentially dangerous items off airplanes.
But TSA officers' engagement—their sense of purpose on the job—has historically ranked among the lowest across the federal government. Employees who feel engaged tend to be more innovative, productive, and committed in their jobs.
TSA has taken steps to address key drivers of officer dissatisfaction, such as by setting up programs to reward performance. However, it hasn't fully addressed those drivers, nor identified the root causes of officer dissatisfaction in areas like communication and work-life balance.
We recommended that TSA do so.
TSA Employee Engagement Index Scores, 2017–2023
Highlights
What GAO Found
Leadership of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has identified the need to improve employee engagement—their sense of purpose in their job—as central to the agency's security mission. According to the Office of Personnel Management, engaged employees are more innovative, productive, and committed in their jobs, and thus less likely to leave. GAO found that five key drivers affect the engagement of TSA's Transportation Security Officers (TSO), who comprise the majority of TSA employees.
TSA has taken actions to address all five key drivers. However, challenges related to each persist. For example, to address TSO concerns with managing and recognizing performance, TSA began requiring supervisors to take a 1-hour performance management course in 2018. In 2021, it set up two programs to reward top performance. However, these actions did not fully address the root causes of TSO dissatisfaction—namely, inconsistent management of TSOs' performance. By identifying and implementing actions that fully address the root causes of the driver, TSA will be better able to improve engagement. Further, TSA has not identified root causes of TSO dissatisfaction for three other drivers—career development, work-life balance, and communication. Without doing so, TSA will have difficulty implementing effective corrective actions that address the specific challenges for each of the drivers.
Transportation Security Officers Gather for a Shift Briefing
For the final driver—demonstrating responsiveness to input—TSA has solicited TSO input on the root causes of low engagement at airports through a survey and other initiatives. However, TSA has not tracked follow-through on these initiatives. By tracking and monitoring follow-through on planned steps, TSA would be better able to ensure implementation and realize the desired effect of improving TSO engagement.
Why GAO Did This Study
TSA employs almost 50,000 TSOs who screen passengers and their baggage at U.S. airports. TSA employees' engagement has historically ranked among the lowest within the Department of Homeland Security and across the federal government.
GAO was asked to review the factors that affect TSO engagement and TSA's actions to improve it. This report examines (1) the key drivers that affect engagement and (2) the extent to which TSA has taken actions to address them.
GAO analyzed the Office of Personnel Management's Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey results from 2020 through 2023, reviewed agency guidance and documentation on TSA's actions to improve engagement, and interviewed human capital officials. GAO interviewed a nongeneralizable sample of TSOs, their supervisors, and senior leaders at five airports selected to capture variation in levels of employee engagement. GAO also interviewed five employee groups, including the union that represents TSOs.
Recommendations
GAO is making nine recommendations, including that TSA analyze the root causes of key drivers of low TSO engagement, such as opportunities for career development and work-life balance, and identify and implement actions to address them. DHS concurred with the recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should identify and implement actions, as appropriate, to address the underlying root causes of TSO dissatisfaction the agency has identified with how TSA manages and recognizes performance. (Recommendation 1) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter that it would take steps to address it by December 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to solicit and use feedback on employees' perceptions of the quality of their performance discussions. In addition, TSA planned to update and provide training for supervisors on performance management, though it was unclear how the training would address the root causes of TSO dissatisfaction. These planned steps could help TSA collect additional information on TSO dissatisfaction and enhance supervisory training. To fully address the recommendation, TSA will need to demonstrate that they have used the information collected, the training provided, or have taken other steps to address the root causes of TSO dissatisfaction. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should conduct an analysis to identify the underlying root causes of TSO dissatisfaction with their opportunities for career development. (Recommendation 2) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by July 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to use airports' submitted Local Action Plans to identify root causes on a national level. While the plans could provide useful information for TSA's root cause analysis, it will not provide the complete information TSA needs to obtain quality results if TSA reimplements its Local Action Planning process and analysis carried out in recent years. To fully address our recommendations, TSA's root cause analysis would need to include root causes beyond the control of local airport leadership and better ensure that the local action planning process and subsequent analysis results in underlying root causes rather than problem statements or topics. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should identify and implement actions, as appropriate, to address the root causes of TSO dissatisfaction with their opportunities for career development. (Recommendation 3) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by December 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to identify and implement actions to address the root causes of TSO satisfaction it identified, as appropriate. These actions, if implemented as described, should address the intent of our recommendation. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should conduct an analysis to identify the underlying root causes of TSO dissatisfaction with TSA support for their work-life balance. (Recommendation 4) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by July 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to use airports' submitted Local Action Plans to identify root causes on a national level. While the plans could provide useful information for TSA's root cause analysis, it will not provide the complete information TSA needs to obtain quality results if TSA reimplements its Local Action Planning process and analysis carried out in recent years. To fully address our recommendations, TSA's root cause analysis would need to include root causes beyond the control of local airport leadership and better ensure that the local action planning process and subsequent analysis results in underlying root causes rather than problem statements or topics. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should identify and implement actions, as appropriate, to address the root causes of TSO dissatisfaction with TSA support for their work-life balance. (Recommendation 5) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by December 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to identify and implement actions to address the root causes of TSO satisfaction it identified, as appropriate. These actions, if implemented as described, should address the intent of our recommendation. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should track and monitor airport leadership progress implementing the three actions identified in each airport Local Action Plan to ensure the plans are implemented. (Recommendation 6) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by July 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to track and monitor submission of airports' Local Action Plans and require airports to provide an update on efforts implemented midway through their 2-year action planning cycle. TSA did not specify how it will track and monitor the status of implementation at the end of the cycle. These actions could address the intent of our recommendation if implemented in a manner that provides visibility into airports' progress over time and helps TSA leadership better ensure planned actions are taken. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should track and monitor whether employees and supervisors discuss the results from Leadership for Engagement Surveys and use those results to inform the development and implementation of individual action plans. (Recommendation 7) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by August 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans for coordinators to document whether discussions of the leadership survey results have occurred, including any reasons why discussions did not occur. These actions, if implemented in a manner that provides TSA leadership with nationwide visibility into whether these steps are being taken as required, should address the intent of our recommendation. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should conduct an analysis to identify the underlying root causes of TSO dissatisfaction with communication from management. (Recommendation 8) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by July 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to use airports' submitted Local Action Plans to identify root causes on a national level. While the plans could provide useful information for TSA's root cause analysis, it will not provide the complete information TSA needs to obtain quality results if TSA reimplements its Local Action Planning process and analysis carried out in recent years. To fully address our recommendations, TSA's root cause analysis would need to include root causes beyond the control of local airport leadership and better ensure that the local action planning process and subsequent analysis results in underlying root causes rather than problem statements or topics. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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| Transportation Security Administration | The TSA Administrator should identify and implement actions, as appropriate, to address the root causes of TSO dissatisfaction with communication from management. (Recommendation 9) |
DHS concurred with this recommendation and said in its comment letter it would take steps to address it by December 2024. Specifically, TSA reported plans to identify and implement actions to address the root causes of TSO satisfaction it identified, as appropriate. These actions, if implemented as described, should address the intent of our recommendation. When we confirm what steps DHS has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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