Transportation Security Officer

U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Allentown (Lehigh County); On-site; USD 38,000 - 61,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking dedicated Transportation Security Officers to ensure the safety of travelers across various transportation sectors. This role involves providing security at airports and potentially high-profile events, ensuring a courteous and professional environment. Candidates will benefit from a competitive salary structure, including locality pay, and the opportunity for a sign-on bonus. Join a dynamic team committed to protecting the public and enhancing security measures in a vital sector. If you are passionate about safety and service, this position offers a fulfilling career path with the chance to make a significant impact.

Benefits

Sign-on Bonus up to $2,000

Competitive Salary

Training and Development Opportunities

Qualifications

• One year of full-time work experience in security or aviation screening.
• High school diploma or equivalent is required.

Responsibilities

• Provide security and protection for air travelers and airports.
• Adhere to personal appearance standards while on duty.

Skills

Security Industry Experience

Aviation Screening

X-ray Technician Skills

Education

High School Diploma or Equivalent

Job description

Transportation Security Officers are responsible for providing security and protection of travelers across all transportation sectors in a courteous and professional manner. Their duties may also extend to securing high-profile events, important figures and/or anything that includes or impacts our transportation systems. Learn more about the Transportation Security Officer (TSO) role on the TSA Careers Website.

Duties

Click the airport name below for more information.

Salary Information:

1. The salary range for PIT - Pittsburgh International is $42,371 to $54,305 or $20.3 to $26.02 per hour and includes locality pay of 20.37%.
2. The salary range for MDT - Harrisburg Airport is $41,745 to $53,502 or $20 to $25.64 per hour and includes locality pay of 18.59%.
3. The salary range for LNS - Lancaster Airport is $38,372 to $53,502 or $18.39 to $25.64 per hour and includes locality pay of 18.59%.
4. The salary range for LBE - Arnold Palmer Airport is $38,948 to $54,305 or $18.66 to $26.02 per hour and includes locality pay of 20.37%.
5. The salary range for ABE - Lehigh Valley Airport is $44,057 to $61,429 or $21.11 to $29.43 per hour and includes locality pay of 36.16%.
6. The salary ranges for AOO - Altoona-Blair Airport, AVP - Wilkes Barre/Scranton, BFD - Bradford Airport, DUJ - Dubois-Jefferson, ERI - Erie Airport, JST - Johnstown-Cambria, & UNV - University Park is $37,696 to $52,559 or $18.06 to $25.18 per hour and includes locality pay of 16.5%.

Sign-on Bonus: The Transportation Security Administration is currently offering:
sign-on bonus of up to $1,000 for AVP, BFD, DUJ, LNS & UNV
sign-on bonus of up to $2,000 for AOO
half of the bonus after onboarding and the other half to be received after one year of service. The amount of the airport's sign-on bonus is subject to change or elimination based on operational needs; however, any applicable sign-on bonus amount will be communicated and agreed upon during the final job offer process.

On July 2, 2023, TSA is converting to a new compensation plan. Under this new plan, Transportation Security Officer (TSO) salaries will become significantly more competitive with the implementation of a three-rung, D, E, and F band career ladder. For additional information, please click here.

This Transportation Security Officer position is located in Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security (DHS). As a Transportation Security Officer (TSOs) within Security Operations (SO), you will provide security and protection of air travelers, airports and aircraft in a courteous and professional manner. Duties may include but are not limited to:

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

Qualifications

To qualify for the SV-D pay band (equivalent to the GS-5/6), you must meet one of the qualification requirements (A OR B) outlined below:

1. A. Experience: At least one year of full-time work experience in the security industry, aviation screening, or as an X-ray technician.
2. OR
3. B. Education: Have a high school diploma, General Educational Development (GED), High School Equivalency Test (HiSET), or Test Assessing Secondary Completion (TASC) high school equivalency certificate.

Credit for experience is given based on a 40-hour workweek. Part-time experience is credited on a part-time ratio, i.e., working 20 hours per week for two months equals one month of experience. No additional credit is given for overtime.

National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

TSA may apply a gender-specific (male or female) hiring preference to fill TSO positions in order to meet security mission and same gender pat-down job-related requirements. At airport locations where it is necessary to apply the hiring preference, candidates of the needed gender will be provided preference in the scheduling of the computer-based aptitude test, airport assessments, processing and selection.

Additional requirements:

1. Occasional Travel Required: A minimum of three (3) weeks of travel in a full-time duty status may be required to complete TSA's New Hire training. New Hire training and travel requirements vary by duty location and may require up to six (6) weeks of full-time duty status travel. This training will occur away from the employee's airport of record. Employees will be paid for compensable hours and reimbursed for authorized travel expenses per TSA Travel Policy. While employed with TSA, other occasional travel may be required.
2. Selective Service Registration Requirement: TSA policy requires verification of Selective Service registration for male applicants born after 12/31/59. To find out if you initially meet the Selective Service registration requirement for TSA employment, please Click Here.
3. Credit Check: Applicants must not have delinquent Federal or State taxes, or past due child support payments.
4. Residency Requirement: To ensure adequate background investigative coverage, applicants are required to have resided within the United States for three of the last five years immediately prior to applying for this position. For those applicants who do not meet this residency requirement, an exception may be granted under the following circumstances - (1) applicant worked for U.S. Government in foreign countries in federal civilian or military capacities; (2) applicant was or is a dependent accompanying a federal civilian or military employee serving in foreign countries; (3) applicant who studied abroad at a U.S. affiliated college or university; or (4) applicant who has a current and adequate federal background investigation completed for a federal or Government contractor position.

Reemployed Annuitants: Since the TSO position is permanent, it does not meet the eligibility requirement for a salary offset waiver under the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2010. Therefore, former Federal or Postal Service employees who are receiving a civilian retirement annuity may have their salary reduced by the amount of their pension, which could result in a biweekly net pay as low as zero dollars ($0.00) or a debt owed to the Federal Government.

TSO Dress and Appearance Responsibilities: TSOs are required to adhere to the Personal Appearance Standard that requires a neat, clean and professional appearance while on duty or while wearing a uniform. This includes adherence to policies on accessories and grooming. For example, with the exception of 1/4 inch stud-type earrings, body and/or tongue piercing may not be visible to the public. In addition, tattoos of any kind on the head, face, and exposed areas of the neck must be covered at all times and not visible to the general public. TSA issued and approved items such as turtlenecks or dickies may be used to cover tattoos on the lower neck.

Work Schedules for Full-time Positions: Specific work shifts and schedules will be determined by the airport.

• Full-time positions require 40 hours per week;
• Full-time work consists of shift-work on any day from Sunday through Saturday, which may include irregular hours, nights, holidays, overtime, extended shifts and weekend shifts, changing shifts, and split shifts.
• A "split-shift" consists of any two work shifts, each lasting at least two (2) hours in one 24-hour period, with at least two (2) hours between work shifts.

Work Schedules for Part-time Positions: Specific work shifts and schedules will be determined by the airport.

• Part-time shifts generally range from 16-32 hours per week;
• Part-time work consists of shift-work on any day from Sunday through Saturday, which may include irregular hours, nights, holidays, overtime, extended shifts and weekend shifts, changing shifts, and split shifts.
• A "split-shift" consists of any two work shifts, each lasting at least two (2) hours in one 24-hour period, with at least two (2) hours between work shifts.

Maintaining Employment: All TSOs must maintain the standard level of certification and fitness for duty, to include:

• Completing classroom training, on-the-job training, and all initial certification testing;
• Recurrent and specialized training and recertification tests on a periodic basis;
• Passing background investigations, including a criminal check and credit check, and all randomly administered drug and alcohol screening tests.

No moving, relocation or pre-employment travel expenses will be paid for this position, or while in application for this position. This position is not a law enforcement position and therefore, is not covered by Law Enforcement Availability Pay or Law Enforcement Retirement. Per the President's 2014 Fair Employment memo, TSA policy is to not adversely consider a candidate based on unemployment or financial difficulty through no fault of their own. For more information on the Fair Employment policy, see "Additional Resources" here.

TSA is an excepted service agency. Employment with TSA does not confer the "Competitive Status" that generally results from selection and service in Competitive Service agencies. However, permanent employees who have at least one year of continuous service with TSA will be eligible to apply for positions in other Federal agencies under the OPM-DHS Interchange Agreement.

Bargaining Unit Status: This position is in the bargaining unit for which the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the exclusive representative.

About the company

The United States Department of Homeland Security is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terrorism, border security, immigration and customs, cyber security, and disaster prevention and management.