Eight TSA screeners at Newark Airport were fired Wednesday morning after they were caught on video sleeping on the job or failing to follow standard operating procedures for screening checked bags, authorities said.
The workers were all transportation security officers who worked in a bag room at Terminal B, the TSA said. They will not be allowed to work again for the agency.
The firings are part of an investigation into security operations at Newark following a series of security breaches there early last year. The airport's federal security director was replaced in April 2011.
In a statement to NBC 4 New York, TSA said it "holds all of its employees to the highest professional and ethical standards and a zero tolerance for misconduct in the workplace."
"Accountability is an important aspect of our work and TSA takes prompt and appropriate action with an employee who does not follow our procedures and engages in misconduct."
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