To limit coronavirus exposure, U.S. airport security screeners push for better masks

FILE PHOTO: People wait in line to reach TSA immigration process at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, U.S., March 9, 2020. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A union representing U.S. airport security screeners is urging the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to supply more effective masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus, union leadership told Reuters on Tuesday.

The union, the AFGE TSA Council 100, which represents about 45,000 transportation security officers at airports across the United States, sent an email on Tuesday morning to TSA Administrator David Pekoske calling on the agency to provide the masks to workers. The email has not been previously reported.