The government shutdown has been going on for weeks—and as anyone who has tried to travel in that time can tell you, its impact is significant.
Airport-goers report major delays across the country. For example, passengers at an airport in Houston claim they waited over four hours to get through airport security over the weekend. Not only that, but Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy recently announced that travelers should expect these issues to get worse.
Part of the reason for these major delays is the workers are not currently getting paid. This has reduced morale in TSA—and, paired with possible absenteeism and known shortages of necessary staff, caused airport operations to slow to a crawl.
But if people want to help these workers who are not being paid, what should they do? TikTok user and flight attendant Sejal Patel (@smileysejalee) says that she has an answer.
How Can You Help TSA Workers During The Shutdown?
In a video with over 245,000 views, Patel says that, while workers cannot accept gifts or cash contributions, there are still ways that one can assist.
“What you can do is, you can find supervisor and give them gift cards,” she explains. “They are doing raffles and giving them away to the team.”
She continues by saying that she had a gift card given to her by a passenger, which she passed onto a TSA supervisor after clarifying that they were able to accept gifts.
“If you’re going through security, you feel called to give to TSA, who isn’t getting paid right now. They can accept gift cards,” she summarizes. “Just find a supervisor and ask them and give it to them.”
Can You Really Give TSA Workers Gift Cards?
In general, TSA workers are “prohibited from accepting gifts of any value while on duty at a TSA security screening location,” per an internal TSA memo obtained by Gate Access.
Additionally, all gifts are limited to a maximum of $20 in value from any one source at a given time, per the U.S. Sun.
That said, there does appear to be a policy in place for what should happen when a TSA worker is offered a gift card. As referenced by Patel, they are typically passed up the chain of command to a manager. From there, it seems that managers will distribute them.
In an email to BroBible, the TSA referenced a recent post on X clarifying its position. The post reads: “We’ve had several queries from the public about our donation policy during the shutdown. TSA management may accept donations from travelers on behalf of TSA which will then be distributed to our front-line work force.”
On Reddit, one user claimed that their airport was “randomly selecting” workers to receive donated gift cards. Others echoed this claim, with some saying this took the form of a raffle.
You Can’t Always Provide Gift Cards
Still, Patel notes in the follow-up video that some airports may simply reject your gift card outright.
According to Patel, she asked staff at another airport if she could provide a gift card. The worker said they could not. They added that they did not know the best way to assist TSA workers going without pay.
“The PSA is that you can still bring stuff, but I would ask the agent before you give it,” she explains. “Ask, ‘Are you guys accepting this?’ Or, ‘What’s the best way to help?’”
It should be noted that TSA workers will receive back pay for their work during this time. However, repayments during the last shutdown took longer than expected. Additionally, there is currently no good estimate as to when the current shutdown will end.
@smileysejalee Travel PSA for anyone gong through US airports: TSA is keeping air travel safe currently, and working unpaid. TSA is not getting paid right now due to the government shutdown but here’s how you can help. #travel #tsa #governmentshutdown #flightattendant #usa
Commenters Chime In
In the comments section, users shared their thoughts about the government shutdown and its impact on air travel.
“The airlines should be donating from their billion dollar profits,” wrote a user.
“ACTUALLY THEY SHOULD JUST STRIKE SO WE CAN END THIS,” declared another. The TSA is not legally allowed to strike. That said, work slowdowns and “sick outs,” where multiple employees call out sick at once, may still be possible. “Good people supplementing capitalism is how we got here.”
“And maybe not give them Starbucks card butgive them a Walmart card,” offered a third. “Everybody needs help with groceries right now.”
BroBible reached out to Patel via email.