TORONTO — The travel industry is full of frequent travellers, and few of us have passed through airport security without the occasional minor complaint, or feelings of frustration.

But what about feelings of unease, embarrassment and anger?

A woman who’s a well-known name and face in the Canadian travel trade was dealing with those emotions and more after her security check at Toronto Pearson, and she’s sharing her story with Travelweek in the hopes that other travellers can benefit from her experience.

“VERY UNCOMFORTABLE”

The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) website outlines need-to-knows about its policies for physical search – known to most travellers as pat-down.

Anyone randomly chosen for additional screening is subject to either a physical search or a full body scan, where available.

Of course, travellers who trigger the alarm on the walk-through metal detector also have to undergo further screening, to find what metal object set off the alarm.

That’s often the case for M., who told Travelweek about a recent pat-down at YYZ. She asked to remain anonymous for privacy.

“I wear the same outfit to airport every time and have for years due to security – no belts, Lululemon leggings, tank, sweater and running shoes,” she told Travelweek. “My watch always triggers the yellow / red square when I go through security.”

Except this time, said M., the security alert square showed up not on her left wrist, but in the middle of her chest.

M. added that there were four to five CATSA employees gathered around, as part of a training session taking place with a supervisor on hand. As per CATSA policy, the screening officer was the same gender.

“The screener did advise she would need to search me, which I agreed to as I’ve never had a search last longer than a few seconds on my wrist,” she said. “The chest pat-down took much longer than the typical wrist pat down has ever taken – possibly over a minute. The screener was a woman, managed by another woman with two others observing – one female and one male.”

She continued: “After approximately 30-40 seconds and feeling very uncomfortable, I looked at the staff and the male screener looked away when I looked at him, which in my mind validated the awkwardness of the situation. The employees did not appear comfortable despite the supervisor advising the pat down was required.”

The CATSA site notes that pat-down may involve a visual search by the screening officer to look for any unusual objects and a physical search by the screening officer using touch to check for items that could be hidden under a person’s clothes. “You always have the right to refuse search; however, you will not be permitted to pass beyond the pre-board screening checkpoint,” says CATSA.

The site also states that pat-down “is always conducted in the most professional and respectful manner possible.” passed through security but she couldn’t shake the sense that something wasn’t right.

She told Travelweek: “I called my husband immediately as I felt violated. He confirmed it wasn’t right and said I should go back and speak to someone. I went back less than five minutes later and the entire staff had been replaced with new CATSA employees.”

“ABSOLUTE POWER TRIP”

Any doubts M. might have had about her experience were put to rest weeks later when her sister emailed her an article from CBC News.

The article’s headline immediately caught her eye: ‘Air travellers complained about unprofessional screening staff. Now the officers are speaking up.’

The story was a follow up to CBC’s August report about some 138 complaints submitted to CATSA by passengers going through security at Ottawa Airport (YOW) between January 2023 and May 2024.

According to the CBC, the most common complaints cited unprofessional, rude and invasive behavior by screening officers during body and bag searches – and travellers described the incidents using words like “truly appalling”, “insensitive” and “an absolute power trip.”

In the wake of that report, CBC’s Sept. 5 follow up article included feedback from former CATSA screening officers who shared details about poor management, lots of staff turnover and an influx of new hires. CATSA contracts out its screening services.

The two CBC articles can be found here and here.

REACHED OUT TO CATSA

The Canadian travel industry knows all about the rush to hire new staff as travel boomed post-pandemic. Reports of long lineups at Canada’s airports, passport offices and more were rampant in those early days of recovery.

In its 2023 annual report, CATSA said it “will continue to work collaboratively with Transport Canada, airport authorities, airlines, screening contractors and other industry partners to provide effective and efficient security screening services while being a critical partner in the recovery of the civil aviation industry, without compromising security effectiveness.

CATSA added: “The organization will continue to increase screening officer capacity. As seen across many labour markets, there are challenges in hiring new screening officers while simultaneously facing the resurgent demand in air travel. Screening contractors will continue to respond to these pressures by recruiting new screening officers.”

The 2023 report also noted that “CATSA has extensively collaborated with Transport Canada in order to continue accelerating the delivery of training to new recruits.”

M. tells Travelweek she has since gone through security at both Vancouver and Toronto airports and the yellow/red security alert square did not appear on her chest or her wrist. “Hopefully this means that my situation was addressed and resolved,” she said.

Travelweek reached out to CATSA to ask about guidelines and best practices for the CATSA pat-down procedure, and in response received a link to the pat-down section on the CATSA site.

As a follow up, Travelweek outlined M.’s pat-down experience and referenced the CBC article and asked if CATSA had any comment. We also asked if there’s an email address or phone number M. or anyone else can use to connect with someone at CATSA to share their concerns. Travelweek did not receive any further response.

This article appears in the Sept. 26, 2024 edition of Travelweek; click here.