I'm an airport security officer. We can't just 'speed up' preventing terrorism, no matter how angry passengers get.
INA FASSBENDER/AFP via Getty Images
- Passengers have been facing long waits for security at airports around the world.
- An airport security officer at Düsseldorf Airport told Insider what workers were facing.
- He said the security service provider wasn't hiring enough staff despite the shortages.
This is an edited, translated version of an article that originally appeared on July 4. It is an as-told-to essay based on a conversation with a security employee at Düsseldorf Airport who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
I've been working on security control at Düsseldorf Airport, in western Germany for more than 10 years.
The system is broken.
We have always been fundamentally understaffed, but there's never been a bigger difference between the number of staffers needed and the number available as there is now.
The basic problem, in my opinion, is cheap airfares. If a flight is cheaper than a large pizza, most people will choose to buy the flight instead.
By Christmas 2020, airports were already struggling with returning passengers after some COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. We were completely bogged down at security, but our company told us that it would do better.
During spring break last year, we were overwhelmed with passengers again, and the same thing happened in the summer. Everyone was amazed that people were flying again so soon.
Every day was "Groundhog Day."
Shift work makes the job particularly challenging. Today, for example, I started at 3:30 a.m., which meant getting up just before 2 a.m.
I got to the airport just after 3 a.m., locked my bag away, and had a coffee. By then, the first crowds were already starting to arrive.
Between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m., I had my legally required break, and then I worked on my team of six from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. After that, I had another half-hour break, and then I continued working until midday, when I finished my shift.
On my first shift, I started as a guide. That's one of the most stressful positions, as you have the first contact with passengers. That means you're who they see when they let off steam after long waits — especially when they've already had a long wait to check in their luggage. In our teams of six, we normally change positions every 20 minutes.
We have five days in a row of early or late shifts, followed by two days off. Then we work four days in a row, with another two days off — and then it starts all over again.
But that also means you have a real weekend — Saturday and Sunday off — only every six to eight weeks on average. That's a big challenge, especially if you have a family and want to have a social life.
The travel chaos has left me extremely tired.
It's like being a football fan at an away game with the opposition fans constantly screaming at you — the volume is incredible. And you have to stand there knowing full well that there's no chance a quiet day is coming up.
It doesn't help telling passengers to arrive earlier, and a bad journey in means they're already annoyed when they get to the airport.
Some people demand that we work faster, but we can't just speed up the checks. If I'm responsible for checking people, I have to be absolutely certain that the passenger isn't carrying anything forbidden through the security area.
I have to check everything until I can guarantee that it's safe for someone to go through — if something goes wrong, we don't get a second chance.
Ultimately, we're responsible for preventing terrorism.
In addition to this psychological strain, it's also physically draining — my bones hurt and my head aches. It's never been as bad as it is at the moment.
The problem with all this isn't that we're not paid enough, it's the type of contracts we're offered.
After the probationary period, new colleagues get 19.01 euros an hour, about $19.37 an hour. For a job that doesn't require any specialist training, that's not bad money.
But the company offers only part-time contracts, a maximum of 120 hours a month, which is 30 hours a week.
After tax, you earn 1,592 euros a month. I'm not sure how people are supposed to be able to live on that.
If you don't live within 3 miles of the airport, then you also have huge fuel costs, and the airport recently increased parking fees from 46 euros a month to 56 euros a month.
Piepenbrock, the company responsible for security at Düsseldorf Airport, declined to comment when contacted by Insider about the security officer's comments.
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