DOT chief Sean Duffy to discuss effects of government shutdown on air travel

(NewsNation) — Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is set to talk about how the government shutdown is affecting airports and travel as it enters a sixth day.

Duffy, along with National Air Traffic Controllers Association President Nick Daniels, will be at the Newark International Airport. The airport has faced a challenging year, with outages and staffing issues leading to hundreds of flights being delayed or canceled.

Air traffic controllers and TSA employees are considered essential workers and must work through the shutdown without pay until the government reopens. The worry is that with a prolonged shutdown, workers could start calling out sick, which in turn could lead to flight interruptions and long lines at checkpoints.

During the shutdown in 2018 and 2019, which lasted 35 days, workers started calling in sick after three weeks. Some air traffic controllers sued the government in an effort to get their paychecks. Miami International Airport temporarily closed one of its terminals at that time because TSA officers were calling in sick at twice the airport’s usual rate.

This recent shutdown comes at a time when there is a shortage of about 3,000 air traffic controllers, and shortages at the Federal Aviation Administration and the TSA.

Until Congress votes to end the shutdown, some 13,000 air traffic controllers and more than 61,000 TSA workers will have to work without pay.