WASHINGTON

- As our nation reels from the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks

of Sept. 11, we also continue to feel the economic impact of those tragedies.

Most notably,

we see those effects in the recent slew of airline layoffs. There is no

doubt that Americans fear for their safety and are anxious about the thought

of boarding an aircraft after terrorists used those vehicles as weapons

of mass destruction.

However, in

response to those cowardly highjackings, the nation's airports have heightened

security to prevent a repeat of further incidents. It is arguable that

because of the increased security, Americans are safer in the air than

at any previous time in our history.

But, the airlines

need to do more. Lines at the nation's airport security checkpoints are

clogged by lack of personnel. Metal detectors stand empty, because airports

lack manpower to open them.

Last week I

traveled from Atlanta to Washington and paused to watch carry-on baggage

back up on the x-ray conveyor belts, as harried security personnel carefully

screened each and every passenger. Passengers were funneled into one or

two checkpoints while others stood empty because of lack of personnel.

Because of

a decrease in passengers, airlines across the nation have reported billions

of dollars in lost revenues and are taking actions to reduce their costs

In spite of a $15 billion Congressional bailout of the airlines, tens

of thousands of flight attendants, reservation clerks, aircraft mechanics,

and other airline employees are facing pink slips.

But the approach

taken by the airlines fails to recognize that the result of those layoffs

means individuals and families without the means to support themselves,

which will have a significant impact on our national economy.

Layoffs mean

millions of dollars of lost income to those individuals. The approach

of laying off workers robs our economy of that lost income. Once that

step is taken, we face an economic tailspin from which it may be difficult

to recover.

An airline

worker without a source of income cannot pay bills, they cannot make purchases,

they are left as a burden to the taxpayer through unemployment programs,

and in many cases are left to fend for themselves as best as they can.

That loss of discretionary income spirals down to local merchants who

then are left unable to pay vendors for goods and services. Those who

depend on that income in turn are left short.

In the end,

the airlines may create a greater burden for themselves by cutting these

workers than they would have if they had kept them on. People with less

discretionary income aren't able to purchase airline tickets.

A better solution

would be to use the cash infusion provided by the Congress and the American

taxpayer to retrain those personnel to assist in the added burden of heightened

security. Shifting personnel from other tasks would allow airlines to

man closed security checkpoints, relieving the congestion on an overburdened

system. In time, as consumers gain confidence in the safety of the airlines,

workers who are trained in multiple skills would be doubly valuable, as

they could then be shifted to the area of greatest need.

Retaining these

workers is the right thing to do for loyal employees, it is the right

thing to do for the economy, and it is a good business decision.

[Mac Collins,

a Republican, represents Georgia's Third District, which includes all

of Fayette and Coweta counties, in the U.S. House of Representatives.]