Yves Duguay says that in airports such as Glasgow, Scotland, the average security screener has been in the job about 15-18 years or more. And while some screeners at Toronto Pearson airport may have that kind of experience, it’s not the norm across Canada, especially in Alberta where screeners have been lured by higher-paying jobs in the oil patch.

“We’re trying to transform it into more of a profession,” says Duguay, who wants to see a better recruitment and retention program created for Canadian airport screeners, something that will become even more critical as the industry competes for employees against other jobs in the security and policing sector.

“We need to make it more appealing. If they are paid well, perhaps it will make a difference too,” he says. Duguay spoke at the Canadian Aviation Security Conference, held in Ottawa, March 5.

One way to attract and retain talent and to have a better screening outcome might be to following the lead of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in the U.S., which compensates airport security screeners on performance.



Gale Rossides, deputy administrator of the TSA says the annual pay of screeners in the U.S. is based on their performance every day on the line. They are tested and have to meet set standards every year to keep their jobs and maintain compensation levels. Training of screening officers also occurs on a weekly basis.

U.S. screening officers are tested during every shift at each of the 450 airports in the country. The TSA conducts 70,000 electronic tests on its workforce every year and 2,500 covertly placed mock bomb components are inserted into the screening system for detection by screeners. Rossides says improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are the No. 1 threat at airports today. The concern is the parts could be snuck on board and assembled in the air.

The TSA has increased its level of screening for the detection of items that could be used in the creation of an explosive device, concerned that terrorists are attempting to smuggle parts on board that could later be put together to form an explosive device.

In Canada, screening officers are also tested on a daily basis with items placed secretly by supervisors.
“The screeners are on their toes and don’t have a lot of time to decide what they’re going to do,” says Marc Gregoire, Assistant deputy Minister-Safety and Security, Transport Canada.