AMNA NAWAZ: After 44 days of working without pay, TSA workers are finally starting to get back pay.

That comes after President Trump issued an executive order on Friday to pay TSA officers immediately.

Still, some airports continue to see long lines due to staffing shortages.

William Brangham has more.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The Department of Homeland Security announced that most TSA employees received a first retroactive paycheck today that covered several weeks of unpaid work.

But many workers say damage has already been done.

Some are still calling out sick or struggling to catch up on bills, childcare, and missed payments after weeks without income.

For more on this, we are joined by Angela Grana.

She's a TSA officer in Colorado and the regional vice president for her state's branch of the American Federation of Government Employees union.

Angela, thank you so much for being here.

Before we get into this larger struggle, about these back paychecks, did you get your check this morning?

ANGELA GRANA, Transportation Security Administration Officer: I did.

I got mine about 4:30 this morning.

I got a paycheck, yes.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: And can you give us a sense of how TSA workers like yourself, prior to these paychecks coming, what it has been like for you all and how you have had to try to deal with working for so many weeks with no pay?

ANGELA GRANA: It's been devastating.

It's been a constant battle with trying to stay alive financially and trying to keep a nice face on for when the passenger comes up to greet you.

You greet them just the same and let them not let them know that there's something very bad deep down inside.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: And what kinds of -- I know I have heard some reports about workers having to take other jobs or do other things to supplement their income.

ANGELA GRANA: So supplementing the income is not an easy task.

You cannot just go get another job.

The agency has to OK that other income and that other work.

And where would you have time to do that when you are already pulling a 10-to-12 hour shift and with one day off a week trying to cover for those that couldn't come to work.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Right.

Can you give us a sense of -- these paychecks started to hit people's bank accounts today?

Is it your sense that that is going to bring the vast majority of people back to work and deal with this issue?

ANGELA GRANA: No.

So, if you resigned, you turned in your badge, which means you also lost your security clearance, which means you're not coming back.

And those that couldn't come to work, hopefully, they will eventually be able to pay off whatever bill that's holding them to stay at home, probably a childcare issue.

And so it's not an easy, quick fix.

It's going to take some time.

And I don't think we're ever going to really recover from this abuse.

There's a lot of finance charges and late fees.

And we're still trying to get ourselves out of the last shutdown, where, if we took a loan there against anything that we had, that -- you couldn't take another loan because you already had one outstanding.

And, unfortunately, the agency does not like it.

And they found big on a bad credit report.

And I guarantee you, we're going to have some officers with bad credit readings.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: You mentioned that you try to put on a brave face for the customers who are coming through the airports.

And I know a lot of people have expressed frustration being at the airport and getting stuck.

And they may not know what you all have been dealing with or the machinations here in D.C.

What do you want those people to know about what you have been dealing with?

ANGELA GRANA: Well, walk a mile in our shoes.

Of course, we're not going to let them know it when we're on the checkpoint.

We're going to be professional.

We're going to be diligent at our job and only focused on our jobs.

Of course, we will say hello and have a nice day and have a safe flight.

But we're not going to let them know how we truly feel.

I would like them to know that it's a big thank you for all, all of those gift cards that they gave us and the donations of food and diapers and laundry detergent, all kinds of -- even pet food.

Those were crazy donations that they didn't have to do.

They already pay a 9/11 tax when they bought their boarding pass.

And that 9/11 tax should be something that we're using as our budget money.

So I'm not sure where the politicians or how the politicians handle our budget line.

But it would be nice if they -- the politicians got themselves together and figured that out, figured all this mess out and stopped doing it on our backs, because I think it's -- I think it's going to happen again at the end of May and probably at the end of September.

We will have to go through all of this all over again.

And we don't have that kind of paid to say for a rainy day.

We start at $40,000.

So I don't know how we're going to -- we're going to ever have money to pay for another shutdown.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: I guess the same question I would ask to you about what you would like the leaders here in Washington to understand.

I mean, a lot of them have now left for a two-week Easter recess.

What do you want them to understand about all of this?

ANGELA GRANA: Well, have a nice vacation.

We're not getting a vacation.

Me, as a grandmother, I have missed a lot of milestones because I'm not allowed to take an unscheduled leave.

Our Easters are not going to be the same.

Most of us are going to work that day.

Easter baskets, forget it.

We're not going to have money for that.

We don't have a red line and a blue line for passengers to be separated.

We have a red, white and blue checkpoint.

We treat everybody the same.

We don't discriminate on what their political desires or wants and needs are.

So we don't understand why the politicians can't serve the American people and fix this issue.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Angela Grana, TSA officer and member of your local union, thank you so much for being here.

ANGELA GRANA: Thank you.

Appreciate it.