Airport Screeners Pick Up Final Paychecks

Federal injunction may change law

By May Chow
AsianWeek Staff Writer

Beleaguered airport screeners who received pink slips and notices of impending layoffs because of their nationality got a welcome break Friday, Nov. 15, when a federal judge issued an injunction against a section of the Homeland Security Act which prohibited non-citizens from being employed as security checkpoint workers nationwide.

U.S. District Judge Robert Takasugi ruled that the portion of the Homeland Security Act which enforced the anti-terrorism Aviation and Transportation Security Act was unconstitutional. The injunction will hold until a court hears a civil rights lawsuit brought by nine screeners from Los Angeles and San Francisco. No trial date has been set.

With this ruling, airports will have to consider non-citizens for baggage screener jobs. This decision affects 8,000 airport screeners nationwide, most of whom have already lost their jobs.

“I work hard, I’m honest, I’ve never been late or absent, I was dedicated to my job,” said Mila Corpuz, 56, who has been a screener at San Francisco International Airport for a little over a year. “I still don’t know why it happened, but it’s really sad for me and for the others who lost their jobs like me.”

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other civil rights groups brought the case to court in January. ACLU attorneys added that they hoped Takasugi’s decision would help convince Congress to pass an amendment before the U.S. Senate that would lift the restriction allowing only citizens to be checkpoint screeners.

Last Wednesday, Takasugi rejected the Bush administration’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuit. The federal government argued that it was Congress’ job to regulate immigration, and that screeners are in the same position as police officers, who are requested to be U.S. citizens.

Daz Lamparas (left), union representative of Local 790.

On Friday, Takasugi said that the nine plaintiffs who are part of the lawsuit had “sufficiently alleged a constitutional deprivation to warrant a finding of irreparable harm.”

Although the ruling comes as good news, it is already too late for many who were released from their jobs before the Nov. 19 deadline. At SFO, however, non-citizens could still be able to work as screeners. SFO is one of five airports participating in an exemption program, which allows privately employed screeners to work for the next two years.

The Homeland Security Act was passed after the Sept. 11 attacks. The law required that all airport screeners be federal employees. Many incumbent screeners — who are immigrants — had to take assessment tests, which included English grammar and comprehension. Many contended that this was discriminatory and had nothing to do with airport security.

Forty-eight-year-old Felix Carvellida, who is Filipino American, said he took the test and thought he did very well. But when he got his results, he was surprised.

“My manager came out and said, ‘No, you didn’t pass,’’’ said Carvellida, who’s been a screener at SFO for nine months. “But they didn’t give me a score, they didn’t tell me what questions I missed, or how I performed in a certain area. They only said by mouth that I didn’t pass. But I never saw my test again. What kind of government picks who they want to work?”

Carvellida was among a group of about 40 laid-off screeners who gathered at the Argenbright Security office in Burlingame to pick up their last paychecks. But many who came did not receive what they were promised.

“We were promised a bonus and all our vacation pay,” said Necxilea Berja, 66, who was a screener at SFO. “We’ve been through so much, all we want is our pay and what was promised to us.”

Justice for Screeners, a group that helps airport screeners, organized a rally on Friday at the Argenbright office to demand that the laid-off employees get their full pay.

“They are violating California law by not paying these people until their last scheduled day,” said Daz Lamparas, representative of Local 790, a union for airport screeners. “So I’m telling these people that they have to, they must speak up and fight for their bonuses and promised salaries.”

Lamparas urged onlookers to picket in front of the office and attend meetings to insure that Argenbright followed up to their promises. The screeners were all let go Nov. 12, and in a memo were promised bonus and vacation pay on Friday. However, all that the screeners received was a regular paycheck.

Mike Hill, manager for Argenbright, said the checks with the bonus and vacation pays were on their way in a plane.

“The workers can come back on Wednesday, Nov. 20 and pick up their checks. They know because I told them personally,” Hill said.

However, Kuusela Hill, from Justice for Screeners, doesn’t believe that, saying that Argenbright is just feeding the screeners empty promises.

“They have not put anything in writing, so this is all talk,” said Hill. “They’re just bullshitting these people. No one wants to take the responsibility and when it comes time, no one wants to foot the bill.”

Reach May Chow at mchow@asianweek.com.