A round of layoffs at airports around the Maritimes means travellers will have to wait longer to get through security, warns the union for security screeners.

The United Steelworkers says about 120 out of 600 workers will lose their jobs this fall, while another 120 will move from full time to part time.

That means fewer workers to maintain the same level of passenger and baggage security, said Lawrence McKay, a union representative.

"There's gonna be a lot of delays. It's not possible to get the amount of people through that need to get through with fewer guards," he said.

But the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) says seasonal cutbacks won't make a difference for travellers.

Mathieu Larocque is a spokesman for CATSA, which buys screening time from private security companies. He said work hours are reduced because air traffic drops in the fall.

"We do not want to affect the wait times and the level of service. At the same time we want to ensure that taxpayers' money is well spent and that we don't offer security or security screening for flights that do not exist in a particular season," he said.

Larocque said CATSA will book more screening time for the Christmas rush and the winter charter season. At that point, he said, security contractors would rehire staff.