PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA — Philadelphia International Airport announced it was temporarily closing two additional TSA checkpoints at terminals A-West and F starting Wednesday due to ongoing TSA staffing shortages. On Thursday, Philadelphia International Airport shut down the Terminal C TSA checkpoint.

TSA workers missed their first full paycheck over the weekend due to the ongoing partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown. Most TSA workers are considered essential workers and are required to show up even when they are not being paid.

As of around 4 p.m. Wednesday, wait times at the remaining TSA checkpoints at Philadelphia International Airport ranged from two to 17 minutes. "Wait times at U.S. airport security checkpoints can vary from day to day depending on how many workers show up for work," said Adam Stahl, Acting Deputy TSA Administrator.

At George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on Monday morning, wait times to get through TSA security ranged from three to 45 minutes. At Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, TSA security checkpoint wait times ranged from 10 to 25 minutes Wednesday afternoon. The O'Hare International Airport website urges travelers to arrive 2-3 hours before departure.

Since the start of the Department of Homeland Security shutdown last month, unscheduled callouts among TSA workers have more than doubled at many key airports across the country. At least 366 TSA workers have quit rather than work for diminished pay or no pay at all.

Over the weekend, the Department of Homeland Security reported more than 100 incidents where staffing shortages threatened operational integrity at U.S. airports and caused waits of more than an hour for thousands of travelers at TSA security checkpoints. On Saturday, Houston's Hobby Airport reported a 55% TSA worker callout rate, the highest percentage since the agency's funding expired in mid-February.

Senator John Cornyn of Texas introduced the End Special Treatment for Congress at Airports Act this week. If passed, the End Special Treatment for Congress at Airports Act would stop members of Congress from receiving courtesy escorts or preferential treatment when going through TSA security at airports.

The partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown was triggered after lawmakers disagreed over the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts enforced by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. The impasse triggered a partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, affecting the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Coast Guard. The partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown does not affect Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other immigration enforcement operations.