Working under the same roof as Mom could make some sons and daughters anxious, but it makes Monique Smith proud.
The 29-year-old Jamaica resident shares the same job, as a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer at LaGuardia Airport, with her mother, Lois Haynes.
“I have been at TSA a little longer than my mom, but she has introduced me to a lot of people at the airport,” Smith said. “Plus, my co-workers are a lot nicer when they find out who my mother is. Sometimes they call me ‘Lois Jr.’ and I don’t mind a bit.”
Smith encouraged her mother to apply for the gig not long after she started working at the airport, about five-and-a-half years ago, according to Haynes.
“It’s funny when co-workers first learn that we’re mother/daughter,” the 49-year-old Queens Village resident said.
They once worked the same shift and at the same check point, but now have different hours and are stationed at different locations within the airport.
“It’s been a pleasure” working with her daughter, Haynes said. She is also thankful that her daughter introduced her to a job she enjoys.
As a TSA officer, Haynes work includes screening passengers and luggage, and checking travel documents. Additionally, she is involved with the recertification of officers.
“I am a people person and I also like to mentor,” Haynes said.
When she’s not at the airport, Haynes spends her free time with her daughter going to boutiques and out to eat.
“We have a very close relationship outside of the job,” Haynes said. “She’s my muse, she picks out my clothes, tells me what looks ugly.”
Though the two have different schedules, this Mother’s Day, they both have off from work.
Haynes, who also has a 15-year-old son, is not exactly sure what her family is planning for Sunday, but she “heard they are going to be making [her] a nice seafood dinner.”
RECOMMENDED STORIES
- New Whitestone barbershop focuses on cuts for special needs kids
- Fresh Meadows middle school will walk to stop bullying
- Radioactive Ridgewood site added to Superfund list
