Tsa Complaints ineffective. Lets try compliments
 

As anyone who has written a complaint to TSA about mistreatment, abuse, sexual misconduct or privacy has found, TSA doesn't care. Complaints fall on deaf ears and the offending TSO is never punished.

Maybe another approach is in order? Let's compliment them, as we have seen on TSA's propaganda blog, complements are very welcome!

Here is a compliment that I might try:

"Hello, I am writing to you to pay a compliment and thank you for the great service some of your officers provide. One officer is particular deserves recognition and reward.

On July 7th at RDU airport at around 7pm in lane B, terminal 2. Agent Tom was particularly helpful. During the screening process Tom searched my bag in an exceptionally professionally way. It as at this time that Tom noticed my can of mace that I use for self protection. tom, rather than making a scene and causing everyone unneccessary problems explained to me that while the item is prohibited, he knew that a white woman in her 40's is not a terrorist and saw no need to inconvience me. He returned my mace to the bottom of my bag and explained that I should leave it at home, and that other agents wouldn't be so forgiving.

Thanks Tom, for exercising good judgment and keeping our country safe!

Please give Tom the recognition and reward that he deserves!"

Why would you assume this? I know for a fact that this is not true. But should you assume that if a passenger does complain that a TSO should always be punished? Some complaints are valid, some are not. But they are all looked at. And yes, TSOs do get in trouble for complaints; I have seen TSO's who are punished, up to termination, because of complaints.

First one to call BS on this statement! :eek:

Thanks. That's the fastest I've ever had a TSO repond to one of my threads.

I think this idea has merit!

(as for the idea that TSA cares about complaints (or passengers) the evidence speaks for itself)

I'm not saying you're wrong. At the same time, FT is full of testimonials from passengers who have filed complaints with TSA and never received any reply (other than, perhaps, the pro forma acknowledgment of receipt). It is hard for such passengers to believe that TSA cares about their complaint when they don't even receive the courtesy of a personal response.

Disclaimer: I've never filed a complaint with TSA, so I have no first-hand knowledge to bring to this discussion.

Crawling back in my corner now ...

Of the three complaints I've filed since 2010, I've gotten a response to two, and it was the standard b.s. response for both.

1) MCO Clerk did not allow NEXUS card. Showed her the website, etc, and was still denied. Had to escalate, and finally got through. Sup said I would be contacted. No contact, so I called in and was promised a call back. Never got one, despite multiple follow-ups.

2) MCI Clerk performed a retaliatiory bag search due to my "The TSA Wants to see me Naked!" t-shirt. Standard b.s. form response.

3) ORD clerk said "people like you shouldn't be allowed to travel" when I opted-out of the cancer machine. Escalated to sup who said he had problems with this clerk in the past, but did not do anything to follow-up.. Clerk was still there two weeks later.

I thought you were going to go with something like...

"I would like to recognize the job that Agent Tom did. Not only did he grab my testicles, but he even instructed me to turn my head and cough. And to help the federal budget issues, he used the same pair of gloves on seven patdowns. Agent Tom is truly a model of what the TSA wants."

Doesn't mean they were not punished. They could have been suspended or what not. Where I work, I am unionized, which means there are certain steps that must be taken before I can be suspended for 1 day, then 3, then 5, then termination. (Of course, if my actions were sever enough, steps could be skipped, which I have seen before.)

I filed one complaint a couple of months ago about a deliberately obstructive, slow-motion bag secondary at MHT as I was running late for a flight about to close. I got back an acid retort from TSA saying everything was all my fault.

I know for a fact that of the three complaints I have filed with TSA I have never received a satisfactory response.

One FSD (FLL) covered up a possible attempted theft.

Dallas TSA won't provide feedback to issues.

LAS TSA could care less what the public thinks.

I don't know how much longer TSA can continue to ignore the public but there will come a time when TSA will wished it had been more responsive to the public.

We are flat out tired of the TSA BS, the Sexual Assault Feel Downs, the refusal to provide the public with real, verifiable information about the Cancer Machines, and especially damn well tired of the TSA Perverts feeling up our children.

We don't assume this, we know this!

To TSA:

On Sunday, July 10, I had occasion to travel travel out of BNA. My experience at your security check point was very good, and I want to pass along my complements to your screeners.

First, the TDC recognized the NEXUS card as a valid ID and I got the magic squiggle without hesitation. He did not try to engage in stupid banter as TDC's at other airports do and he did not ask me to pronounce or spell my name. These exercises that are done at other airports are really idiotic and I was pleased that this has not seen its way into BNA, my home airport. The process of comparing ID to BP is already silly as it is and he made the process as painless as could be.

Second, the woman that was guarding the lines into the WTMD and MMW was very helpful in allowing me to see my belongings after I opted out. I told her that I would not stand where she told me to as I could not see, so she found me another place to stand. She did suggest that I should not put my bags through the x-ray if I was going to opt out, but since I do not know if I will opt out until she decides which path I will take, I found this suggestion unhelpful but I appreciated her helpfulness anyway. She even said that I would always be selected for the MMW. That is good to know even though I have never found that to be true. In fact, subsequent passengers were directed through the WTMD, so maybe she was just in training and did not know that everyone does not go through the MMW.

My opt out frisker was also very courteous. He did not karate chop my testicles, and the intrusive and unconstitutional search (my opinion of course) was completed quickly.

The gentleman that secondary searched my carry on was also very nice. Even after it alarmed for explosive, he was professional and thorough. He even allowed me the privilege of putting everything back in myself, saving me the difficulty of finding mispacked items at my destination. This repacking has an additional advantage: I could take a complete inventory of my stuff and verify that nothing was stolen as it often is as other check points.

Finally, a second ETD operator was observed operating at the greatest efficiency as he did not waste time taking off his dirty gloves just used in a pat down before grabbing a clean swab out of the can. Even though he may have contaminated several of the other swabs in the can, his test was "negative" so his effort to save time turned out to be a good choice.

I want to thank you for this great experience. I made my flight, I have no soreness in my testicles, I was not exposed to x-rays (at least I do not think I was) and my NEXUS passed its test. If I am going to have an unconstitutional intrusive search and get my "resistance" fondled, it could not have been done any better than your folks at BNA.

Thanks again!

INK

Brilliant!!!!

Just the kind and tenor of compliments needed - sadly, the agency and it's operatives are too stupid to understand the sarcasm...

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8830/4.5.0.138 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/105)

...And about 5-6 clerks would be rewarded with cash bonuses and/or time off.

I'm surprised. The DFW TSA public relations office was very friendly and helpful to me, and it seems to me like they actually followed through; I haven't seen a recurrence of the problem. Of course, I didn't have a really controversial issue, just a clear-cut example of a TSO being ignorant of a policy.

PM me if you want the phone number and name of the guy I spoke with.

If a supervisor tells me that this is not the first time he's had passengers complain about a certain clerk, then something is not right. I've had TSA

Not surprised. That's what happened when I called to report rude behavior from Aiello @ ORD.