DATE: April 22, 2020
TO: All Personnel, LGA, HPN, ISP, SWF
FROM: Robert A. Duffy, Federal Security Director, LGA, HPN, ISP, SWF
SUBJECT: Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Directive
As I write this memo to all of you, I want to say thank you for your continued outstanding effort to carry on with the TSA mission every day in the face of a serious health risk that the corona virus has become over the past two months for all of us here in New York. Last week, DFSD Matt McKeon sent a memo to all of you reminding you that in spite of the early signals that we may be seeing a reduction in the number of new infections to the general population in New York, we can’t let our guard down and get complacent with personal hygiene.
I completely agree with that guidance. We are still seeing our officers becoming infected, and this week, more positive test cases came to our attention. It is for this reason that I am taking the action to now mandate that all Screening personnel at all four of our airports must wear a face covering over your nose and mouth, and you must also wear nitrile gloves for your protection against becoming infected with the corona virus. The driving factors in making this decision are based on my recent visits to checkpoints this week, and discussions I have had with Screening leadership. We still have some officers and managers who do not wear a mask or gloves while on-duty at certain positions at the checkpoint, or because they feel they don’t interact directly with the passengers. That is no longer acceptable.
My biggest responsibility as your Federal Security Director is for the safety, health and well-being of all of you. I am responsible for you, I care about you and I do not want you to become infected by a disease that has had fatal consequences for thousands of people in the US since this pandemic began. I also make this decision based on my personal experience. I was infected by the corona virus in March and just came back to work on Monday. The illness is very serious and easily transmitted to others. After I became infected at some point in March while spending time at the checkpoints, I unknowingly infected my wife at home with the virus. You need to consider that wearing a mask and gloves at work is not just about you, it is also about protecting your loved ones at home and your friends outside of work. I don’t want any of you, your families and friends to get sick with the corona virus like I did.
We offer you two kinds of masks: surgical masks and N-95 masks. I am requiring you to wear the surgical mask. We will provide the masks to you at no cost, or you may provide your own mask at your personal cost if you prefer. A simple read and sign training is all you need to do before wearing the surgical mask. The N-95 mask is not required under this directive since there is a more involved process due to the much different nature of that mask. There is also an OLC course required before wearing an N-95 mask. That said, we do have N-95 masks available to anyone who wants to wear that style of mask. Since leaders must lead by example, and I will not require you to do anything that I won’t do, I too wear a mask at all times while at our screening checkpoints. I thank you again for your dedication and devotion to duty during this challenging time.
All the best for good health to you and your families.
