Okay, so here's my beef with gate screening: how does it address the problem of understaffing? If you subtract people from the main checkpoint and send them off to do gate checks, won't you be in a worse place than where you started? As I understand what you've said, TSA can just arbitrarily NOT check people who got SSSS' es and do gate checks to compensate.
How it's addressing the problem is that SSSS screening at the checkpoint stops. The lines will at that point run more freely because BP's and such don't need to be checked and SSSS don't hold up Hand wanders and such having to be screened then and there.
Depending on your airport, you send one maybe two teams of screeners out to do random gates and have them meet a set % that TSA has set up. So in the long run it helps, but you don't screen what TSA feels are the threat I guess 100% of the time.
Could this be due to the fact that the goverment dictates staffing levels?
TSA doesn't even dictate it's own staffing really. Like TSAMGR said, if they would set it up that more screeners were on the checkpoint at the pike times it would make things much easier for everyone.
Same goes for the ever so important Five if you want someone moving all your precious belongings along so the line keeps moving hack.
Sorry, but it's not a position any longer. It was cut a long time ago, but many airports still use it because a lot of passenger just can't seem to put their items on in a correct matter. (Examples: Laptop out of case in bin but place bag directly on top of it / Bag is to large standing up to go through xray but laying down it's fine but the passenger insist on standing it up / People can't remember what to take out of their pockets / Some passengers need help because of babies and such/ Laptop in bin with shoes on top of it / Reminding passengers to leave their BP's out because they seem to ignore what the WTMD screener is asking them to do countless times)
Not every line is always caused by TSA, sometimes it's the passengers in line that just won't listen to you and what you ask them to do. And you can sit there and give them instructions on what to do and they just don't understand or they ignore you.