The federal rule, imposed in February, allows the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to fine passengers who refuse to wear a mask. Union leaders are cautioning that even with millions of Americans getting vaccinated and numerous states loosening their COVID-19 restrictions, strict rules need to stay in place for airplanes and airports.
“We’ve made tremendous efforts to get the pandemic under control, but we’re not quite there yet. That's why we must continue the TSA enforcement directive for the CDC transportation mask mandate to keep passengers and aviation workers safe,” said Sara Nelson, international president of Association of Flight Attendants-CWA.
The mask mandate for air travel stemmed from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) order that required masks at transportation hubs. President Biden signed an executive order on his first full day in office directing federal agencies to “immediately take action” to mandate the use of masks in airports, on trains, on intercity bus services and on ferries.
Before February, flight attendants and other airline workers were responsible for enforcing company policies requiring masks for passengers. Travelers who refused to comply were often put on the airline’s no-fly list. Delta Air Lines, for example, has banned more than 1,200 passengers for noncompliance.
Unions are largely supportive of having federal agencies like TSA mandate passenger compliance, as opposed to airlines enforcing separate company policies.
“These efforts are helping to restore public confidence in air travel and crew members today are welcoming more and more passengers back aboard our planes. ALPA supports all efforts that promote a healthy flying environment to help protect crews and the traveling public,” the Air Line Pilots Association, International said in a statement to The Hill.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has received about 1,300 reports of unruly passengers since February. About 260 of those cases have been identified as potential violations and of those 260 cases, FAA has initiated enforcement action in about 20 of them, according to the agency.
Nelson, head of the flight attendants union, told the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee last month that airline crew members experienced “a notable increase in the frequency and intensity of disruptive passenger incidents” starting in the middle of last year, with conditions worsening in 2021. Many of those incidents involved passengers not complying with the mask mandate, she said. ...
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