Airport workers face stiffer FAA rules
December 5, 2001 Posted: 5:41 AM EST (1041 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An estimated 1 million people who work in secure
areas of the nation's airports will undergo fingerprint-based criminal
background checks under a Federal Aviation Administration regulation
going into effect this week.
The FAA rule will apply to baggage screeners and employees who work in secure
areas of airports, including everyone from aircraft mechanics to employees of
newsstands and coffee kiosks.
Airports and airlines will have one year to conduct criminal background checks on
current employees.
Beginning Thursday, new job applicants must be checked before they join the
workforce, said spokeswoman Rebecca Trexler.
The rule applies to all commercial airlines and about 450 airports, sh e said.
Congress mandated the change last year and gave the FAA until November 2003 to
implement it. The FAA said Tuesday it was expediting the change because of the
threat of terrorist attacks.
The FAA said it is "likely" the organization that staged the September 11 terrorist
attacks "has sought or will seek to place members in positions at airports to
facilitate future attacks, or that it will attempt to co-opt individuals already in such
positions."
The current method of investigating employees is "not adequate," the FAA said.
Under current regulations, job seekers must provide a 10-year employment history.
The employer -- either an airline or airport -- verifies the most recent five years of
that history, typically by calling previous employers.
An employer can request a criminal background check only if one of four "triggers"
is spotted, such as an unexplained gap of 12 months or more in the 10-year
employment history.
The FAA said it is concerned the four triggers do not always identify job seekers
with criminal histories.
During an October 2001 audit, the FAA and the U.S. Department of Transportation
found some employees had disqualifying criminal convictions.
Employees will not be permitted to work in secure areas of airports if they were
convicted or found not guilty by reason of insanity of a disqualifying crime during
the previous 10 years.
cnn.com
steve |
