"Hartsfield Suspends Subcontractor Over Security Breach"

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Atl Airport Suspends Subcontractor
WXIA-TV Ch 11 (NBC), Atlanta (GA)


Hartsfield-Jackson Airport has suspended the security clearance of a
subcontractor that was renovating a concourse restroom.

The airport said the subcontractor, T.C. Drywall of Alpharetta, was
employing illegal immigrants for the job, and the airport gave the employees
the access they needed to get to the concourse.

The Director of Airport Security tells 11Alive News his office did
everything by the book, and he had no way of knowing that he would be
granting limited security clearances to six employees of the subcontractor
-- employees who are illegal immigrants.

Richard Duncan said no passengers were ever in any danger, and says the
Transportation Security Administration concluded the six undocumented
workers from Mexico posed no security threat.

Federal immigration agents arrested them, and will now seek to deport them.

Duncan tells 11Alive News the airport relies on private contractors to vouch
that their workers do comply with all federal labor laws.

"We have already taken action to suspend the access of this company [T. C.
Drywall], pending the review of all employees that have access to the
secured or sterile areas," said Duncan.

The airport believed, he said, that the six workers who got security
clearances were documented workers.

"Well, I had an immediate concern that we needed to go back and look at the
documentation that was presented to our office to ensure that we had
complied with all the requirements that are specified in the regulations.
And we feel very confident that we have met all the federal requirements
dealing with those six individuals that had access to those areas, based on
the documentation that was presented to us within the last month," said
Duncan.

Duncan said the airport is now reviewing all employees of T.C. Drywall who
have access to secured or sterile areas.

But on a day to day basis federal regulations require the private
contractors and subcontractors to do those background checks.

"That is the responsibility of the companies that hire these individuals,
and not [Atlanta's] department of aviation," said Duncan.

11Alive News was unable to reach anyone with T.C. Drywall and it was close
to 5 p.m. when the airport's news conference wrapped up.

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