Administrator Pekoske visits TSA’s Transportation Security Operations Center for virtual town hall with employees

TSA Administrator David Pekoske with Federal Air Marshal’s Executive Assistant Administrator, Michael Ondocin at the TSA 23rd virtual employee town hall meeting. (TSA photo)

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Administrator David Pekoske was at the TSA Transportation Security Operations Center (TSOC) on Tuesday, Oct. 13, to meet with the local TSA workforce and conduct one of his regular virtual town hall meetings, which was broadcast to agency employees nationwide.

TSOC is the Northern Virginia-based nerve center for TSA security operations. This 24-hour operations center processes information for incident management from numerous worldwide coordination centers for collaboration on intelligence and domain awareness for all DHS transportation-related security activities.

“The TSOC office motto – still on watch – best defines and represents what this office does across the global transportation sector,” Pekoske said. “Federal Air Marshals represent a key law enforcement capability and critical deployable asset for our agency, and I am honored to visit this office today.”

He thanked the Federal Air Marshals from the Dallas and Houston teams, who responded to Southwest Louisiana and provided security to medical supply convoys and temporary hospital facilities tasked with restoring critical medical services in the storm-damaged communities of West Calcasieu, Cameron, and Sulphur, Louisiana.

Their work “highlights the Federal Air Marshal Service’s capacity to provide timely, skilled law enforcement resources to support overall disaster recovery efforts,” Pekoske said. “Federal Air Marshals work in close collaboration with other federal stakeholders to provide critical support, continually displaying their dedication to the mission and willingness to help others, often while operating in difficult conditions.”

Pekoske also assured the workforce that the agency is doing all it can to support employees affected by hurricanes and wildfires including the establishment of an Emergency Leave transfer program to assist employees affected by Hurricanes Laura and Delta, as well as the California wildfires, which allows employees to donate leave to fellow TSA employees adversely impacted by the hurricanes and wildfires.

While conducting the town hall meeting, the Administrator reminded the workforce to continue to take health precautions to help combat the coronavirus when they are not working by continuing to wear masks, social distance and be thoughtful about where to go out in public areas.

It was the 23rd town hall meeting that the Administrator has conducted since the start of the pandemic.

ON DEMAND: Business-impacting events such as severe weather, man-made disasters, and supply chain disruption are increasing in frequency and making impacts around the globe.

Employees don’t feel prepared to navigate an increasingly dangerous world, and they expect their employers to not only care about their personal safety, but to actively keep them safe.