SYD Security vs. TSA
 

Flying back to SFO today, I was once again amazed at the professionalism of the screeners in Sydney. To start, there were no barkers when I approached the checkpoint, instead the screeners were calmly helping people. I was also able to keep my shoes on. The screeners even told me to have a nice day, and a safe flight

SYD Security: 10/10

Of course, when I get to SFO, I'll unfortunately have to clear through Team SFO. The calm environment will disappear, and the barkers will return. Shoes will have to come off, and nobody will be very friendly.

TSA: 0/10


My question to the screeners on this board, why can't your employer teach you some people skills? Perhaps say things in a calm voice, rather than yelling loud enough for people in China to hear you? TSA might have a little better reputation if you were a bit nicer to the people paying your salary..

I'm a friendly screener at SFO =P

And since nobody knows the rules (since we have like 124321789313464515 rules), we tend to make sure passengers can hear. I wish there was an easier way to do it.

There is an easier way to do it than screaming at people.


~~ Irish

Yes people can hear you loud and clear. But what one thing that is forgotten is that a lot of people dont speak or undrestand limited english.

And the only thing they get that is that some people are screaming on top of their lungs.
And then they get it trouble for not understanding.

Someone screams at me. I scream back.

Oh yea? Do elaborate then.

You pick a position near the front of the line, and you speak to each individual, quietly and politely. By doing so, you appear to be professional, calm, and relaxed. Otherwise, you simply appear to be an out-of-control, screaming maniac, and set the expectation in the traveler's mind for quality of the next interaction he'll have with a blue-shirt.

Take your choice.


~~ Irish

A smile. That goes a long way. Understanding peoples fear of all this security.

Security is supossed to make people feel safe not make them feel like criminals.

Nobody ( almost nobody) wants to be seen nude by strangers or being groped by strangers. To me is that I feel raped on command.

And of top of that to be screamed at. That is so odd and wrong.

I know one screener at my terminal who is like that, screaming at the top of his ....ing lungs for no reason. Pisses me off.

At SFO, I've heard word that we may have a TSO greet passengers as they come in, and do exactly as you said. That might work at domestic terminals, but would probably not do so well at an international terminal, where many passengers don't speak a lick of english. I do agree that we shouldn't exactly yell, but maybe talking a little higher for people to hear us. You see, in the checkpoint itself, it can get REAL noisy. On each lane at SFO, we normally have a TSO outside each land that helps passengers get ready, so that's a plus.

I try to smile when I can, except when i'm working real fast at TDC (checking tickets), unless it's slow. I agree. Smiling does go a long way sometimes.

I'm sure it's not what you meant, but it sounds like you're implying that speaking loudly in English to a non-English speaker is an effective cross-cultural communication technique.

[QUOTE=senseker;14958896]I know one screener at my terminal who is like that, screaming at the top of his ....ing lungs for no reason. Pisses me off.

At SFO, I've heard word that we may have a TSO greet passengers as they come in, and do exactly as you said. That might work at domestic terminals, but would probably not do so well at an international terminal, where many passengers don't speak a lick of english. I do agree that we shouldn't exactly yell, but maybe talking a little higher for people to hear us. You see, in the checkpoint itself, it can get REAL noisy. On each lane at SFO, we normally have a TSO outside each land that helps passengers get ready, so that's a plus.

Perhaps it is time that the TSA higher some bilingual persons for those as you say "don't speak a lick of English" Some that may in fact have a good education and able to speak in a calm and friendly tone. Again, having a good education could bar you from becoming working for the TSA as nobody likes to be shown up.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Either way isn't going to work. International passengers do understand "shoes" at least ;)

It would be nice to have more bilingual. Also, higher education doesn't mean speaking multiple languages. I've heard of many drug dealers who can speak spanish and chinese perfectly.

Maybe if TSA stopped doing things that make no difference (ie, no shoes off, no liquids out, get rid of TDC etc), they'll be able to provide useful 'customer' assistance.

The only issue I have with security in SYD is pulling people aside for extra screening (ETD and sometimes a patdown) merely because they have to meet a quota of giving extra screening.

Just my take. Disney can manage massive crowds of people of all nationalities without any yelling. Hire Disney to setup TSA checkpoints.

Loud environments only get louder when people are raising their voices. Using quieter tones will actually lower the noise level across all areas of a checkpoint.

Signage placement at TSA checkpoints must have been decided on when no people were present in the checkpoint. I have notice that signage is often blocked by the lines of travelers. Get the signs up high, use video displays to show what people should be doing.

Again, get Disney to to setup the checkpoints, they know how to handle people.

Remember, it's not what people should be doing, it's what paranoid insanity demands they must be doing. It is quite a large difference.;)

I've always been boggled as to why the TSA doesn't go out of their way to hire multi-lingual employees for checkpoints for the more busy international terminals in the USA.

In some parts of the world, at major airports, it's common to encounter screening personnel that speak many languages (typically the most common languages seen at that airport/checkpoint).

International Terminals should be International when it comes to personnel, IMHO.

Actually, Disney was brought in as a consultant in the early days of TSA; they helped design the screening checkpoints at (at least) BWI with creating an efficient passenger flow in mind.

Any regular Baltimore flyers want to comment?

I would say that there is so much noise in the area that shouting efforts are useless. Especially for me - hearing impaired - all that comes thru is there is someone over there shouting at the crowd and who is completely unintelligible. Culturally, shouting is considered rude and boorish. Something engaged in by bullies or people who mistake force of argument for cogent position. The message being conveyed is not a useful one about procedures it is a negative one about TSA employess.

A simple, well-placed, large type, concise sign would be much more effective.

Not a BWI regular, but the only checkpoint that seems "roomy" and has the "potential" to be efficient at BWI is the new A / B checkpoint.

My guess is if Disney was indeed consulted, it would have been for the design of the A/B checkpoint? Any BWI'ers?

Since I begain to read TS&S earlier this year, I have been counting. Counting 'please' and 'thank you' and 'you are welcome' around the world. Even on a busy holiday weekend at MUC I counted no less than 14 polite exchanges from me and the screener.

I hear 'may I' often instead of orders in other English speaking countries. I am asked at LHR if a spot check swab is going to make me late for my flight. I am beckoned over to a line with no wait with a smile and a cheerful good morning. I have been apologized to because only one lane was open and not two lanes early one morning, even though there were only a few people ahead of me.

It is entirely possible to do all of this and still provide security.

I sadly don't experience the same from the US. Simply choosing different words would improve the reputation of TSA, but it seems that there is always an excuse why that isn't possible. Request instead of demand, for instance. Some TSOs may do this, but it appears to be the norm elsewhere and the exception in the US at the airport screening.

I honestly don't know how to put this nicely, but do you realise that when you do that we are not impressed? It makes you look like an uncultured fool, and reinforces unfortunate stereotypes. What makes one think that if I don't understand a word in a regular voice I will understand it once it is shouted at me?

Explaining why security is Mickey Mouse... :D

I thought it was one of the big consulting firms (Booz, maybe) that came in and worked on passenger flow & screening procedures. Not that it really helped. The only checkpoints that are decent are the A/B checkpoints. And ALL of them have some of the worst personnel around.

Is that the reason the NoS was installed at the international gates?

Passing through SFO two hours ago, I was reminded of the many reasons that TSA is not liked. Although the barkers were not out, I was given the evil eye when I said that I would prefer to push my property into the xray. :rolleyes: never happened in Sydney. Maybe we should send the clerks over to Sydney to learn some people skills.

This is the exact reason I have yelled back at the barker to shut up there giving me a migraine, and get a supervisor NOW. That response always gets there attention and everyone in earshot, and shuts the barker up pdq. Once i talk to the supervisor depending on how it goes i either go through that checkpoint or pick another one. Then once through security i get a comment card to fill out and mail in as well as get the contact info of the FSD Im sorry yelling accomplishes nothing other then to piss people off and have them tune out what ever your saying.

again and yelling louder and gesturing to someone who doesnt understand the language will all of a sudden understand....newsflash it doesnt, it just gives the person a very bad impression of the United States and makes its less likely that they will come back.

well your in a very small minority. In my travels maybe 1 in 50 govt clerks have a smile on there face the rest of the time it looks like the neighborhood dog thats been beaten repeatedly.

They won't get anything out of it. At most, they'll just tell Sydney "You're doing it wrong".

I mean, who really cares about Australia? I mean, they're all like "g'day mate". This is the US of A.

AMERICA. .... YEA.

....ing kangaroos.

...but... but

Oprah's coming.:eek:

Or worse, they'll like Sydney and want to stay. :eek:

Not with that Australian dollar selling for 99 U.S. cents. :D In my 15 years of travel to Australia it's never been that strong.

fortunately, we are just xenophobic enough to refuse you residency...

lol @ VH-RMD :D

In this country we do like to travel without succumbing to the moronic requirements of removing our shoes or producing I'd for a rentacop at the screening point in order to travel. Hell, we can even carry liquids on board our flights, and the planes aren't falling out of the sky.

As a humble Australian, I'm going to ask the posters to scratch their suggestions of sending TSA boors down under to learn a thing or few about respectful conduct at checkpoints, lest their hairbrained ideas surrounding IDs liquids gels and shoes seep through :D

@senseeker: ever wonder why people (americans and furriners alike) find your mob so annoying? Your last post holds the answer.

That was not my experience some ten months ago flying out of SYD. Have things changed?

i can't even do that flying out of auckland, and the last time i made an international to international transfer in brisbane i had to give up the unopened bottle of water i got after security in auckland. well, i gave up the bottle, but the contents came with me, damn it.

tsa do an amazing job uniting passengers in a shared miserable experience.

edited to add: i don't want to tar all of tsa with the same brush. flying through lax last year i was subjected to being gate searched with the agent (is that what you call them?) quite happily going through all of my stuff right in front of the queue of people boarding the flight. hardly a proud moment given up until that point i'd flown from auckland to melbourne to los angeles with barely time i take a breath. i've never had to use so much self-control in my life to not get smart and ask if he even knew what he was looking for.

on the other hand, i was randomly pulled from the queue waiting to board a flight in memphis to be patted down and swabbed for explosives, and both agents were charming and great to deal with, and even had the decency to bump me up to the head of the line to get on board, so i gained places instead of losing one.

Sadly on other FT forums and even on TS&S there are posters complaining about the evil security measures they encountered whilst on their way home to America. What they don't seem to realise is that those 'extra' measures on US bound flights on US carriers are not courtesy of us....

I honestly believed that senseeker's response was tongue in cheek mimicking one of his/her more xenophobic colleagues who has posted some rather memorable comments about furriners. Those thoughts are certainly not unique if one reads online travel forums, especially US based leisure forums.

Now I am not so certain.

We had our worse TSA experience in MEM. Yelled at my wife & I because they do things different then at other stations. Screamed at me for putting shoes in the "bin" where in LAX, ORD, & many other stations that is OK. Didn't notice their sign "shoes on belt" until I had everything on the belt. :mad: Pax behind me was allowed to put his shoes in the bin. TSA had the nerve to say "we answer to nobody" when I asked for a supervisor. Guy refused to get one. Took away wife's keychain attachment (fingernail file, etc) that previously travelled over 150K air miles (6-7 countries, a number of USA states & Canada--most intl trips were award tickets in biz :)). Wife does not want to fly to MEM again. Only reason we flew there was a $118 RT airfare LAX-MEM on AA, my airline of choice.

I contrast this to Australia & Europe. Very professional & polite. (in my view, much more effective than TSA). In Tasmania, I accidently had some fruit in my bag. This was an Ag requirement--no fruit out of Taz. They were very nice, allowed me to consume some of my fruit before entering their station. :) The Melbourne security last year were very polite & no "shoe carnival". ^

Bottom line: All of the European & Australia security folks I (we) dealt with were very polite and very patient if I (we) don't know all the rules. With TSA, who knows what rule apply at what station? :td: Rules change depending on the mood of the agent & what station one is at. Why can't TSA follow their SOP consistantly like I have to do at my govt job?

I make an obvious joke, and you take it personally. Sheesh.

:rolleyes:

On Australian domestic (and, I believe) NZ domestic flights, there are no liquid restrictions. I've bought a bottle of wine in Adelaide and taken it home in my carry-on. :D

International flights out of Australia and NZ still have the silly US-initiated rules, not just for flights to the US but for all international flights.

That said, the implementation at SYD (at least) is polite and errs on the side of the passenger. I was once behind a woman who had a single tube of liquid makeup in her handbag; the screener had her take it out of the bag, looked at it, said something quiet, brief and politely about how it probably should have been in a baggie, and let her put it back in her bag and go. Another time, I was behind two women who, between them, had ordinary makeup zipper bags full of cosmetics, a half-consumed small (but not airplane mini) bottle of Jack Daniels, and a silver hip flask. The agent patiently had them remove the zipper bags from their carry-ons and ran them separately, confiscated the JD, and emptied the silver flask into a sink before returning it. As they were repacking their stuff, I heard them complaining to each other, and I quietly told them that they'd gotten off lightly, and it would have been much worse for them in the US. ;)

I have NEVER, at an Australian or NZ airport, seen liquids confiscated just because they weren't in a baggie or seen a screener simply grab an item and toss it in the trash.

As I have posted elsewhere, the family just came back from a wonderful vacation in Queensland, where the only downside was the crashing (ten percent over the course of our visit) American Dollar.

We flew domestic (BNE-CNS-BNE) and we took our water and kept our shoes on. One segment I had to take out the laptop but not another.

But BNE-LAX at the first security was full TSA kippie bag 100ml "security" with Australian congeniality and friendliness. After that was a very random check at the gate and a pack of Australian Federal Police dogs. But we were at least able to carry on the water we purchased after security.