Originally Posted by SkiAdcock
I've been through that particular lane before on numerous occasions & don't remember the machine going back/forth every single time for every single item. Also, our lane appeared to a) be the only really slow one; b) the only one where 5 laptops in a row got called for 'secondary'. My guess (and it's only a guess) is that the person looking at the screen was new, based on the above.
There are other possibilities I didn't mention. At my airport at least, we are in the process of cross-training screeners in checked baggage and checkpoint procedures. Until now, we specialized in one and maintained the minimum required proficiency in the other. Starting next month (October) we will all be full-fledged Jedi Knights and will rotate between checked baggage and checkpoint operations.
A distinct possibility is that screeners were being trained on checkpoint duties. The best way to train someone how to correctly perform ETD analysis of property is to do it on a continuous basis until the trainee masters the skill.
I'm just guessing. I don't see a big problem here; I'm just trying to give you and other members of this august forum some insights.
P.S. From the comments made thus far about screeners not always opening the laptops as part of the ETD screening process, seems to me that checkpoint screeners could use a little bit of re-training on correct procedures. Supervisors and Leads: what's
your excuse for this?