Rochester International Airport Hosts TSA Hiring Event

(ABC 6 News) – On Tuesday, the Rochester International Airport hosted a TSA hiring event at the Best Western Rochester Hotel to help alleviate staffing shortages.

With the goal of streamlining the hiring process, people who attended the event left with a good idea of their eligibility to be hired as TSA agents.

People were guided through the online application and had the opportunity to take the computer-based exam and receive results almost immediately.

One agent told ABC 6 News that the airport is in dire need of female officers. This is because standard pat-down searches are required to be conducted by an agent of the same gender.

Overall, the goal is to alleviate staffing shortages the airport has been experiencing since the start of the pandemic.

"The pandemic, retirement, people moving on to other opportunities either within the organization or external… it’s lowered our headcount. We’re hoping to get anywhere from a dozen to two dozen people; that’s ideal," said Lead Transportation Security Officer Jesse Perez. "However, whatever we get we get. If we get one person hired out of this event, to me it’s worth it."

If you couldn’t make the event and are interested in applying to be a TSA agent, you can find more information on the airport’s website.