Some 9,000 municipal city workers, including firefighters and police, were put on unpaid leave for refusing to comply with a Covid-19 vaccine mandate that went into effect on Monday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Monday as quoted by The Hill.
The workers had a deadline that ended on Friday to receive at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine after previously having the possibility of taking weekly Covid-19 tests instead of getting the jab, but the mayor pointed that those who were placed on unpaid leave can return if they receive the jab.
De Blasio pointed that 91% of the nearly 400,000 people that the city employs employees have been vaccinated with another 12,000 who have filed for a religious or medical exemption and will be getting their answer in the coming days.
He also reported that employees since the mandate was announced on Oct. 20, more than 22,000 municipality workers have received the vaccine with more than 3,500 workers getting the jab over the weekend alone.
According to Police Commissioner Dermot Shea’s statement, only 34 officers and 40 civilian members of the force are currently off the job without pay because they refused to get vaccinated. The number of NYPD officers that has received one dose of the vaccine has increased to 84% from 70% at the time the mandate was announced.
At the same time, New York Post reported that as the mandate went into effect, 2,300 firefighters called out “sick”, more than double the usual 1,000, leaving “temporarily out of service” 18 fire and ladder companies and dozens more undermanned.
Though New York City Fire Department (NYFD) Commissioner Daniel Nigro insisted the department is functioning “quite well,” Deputy Commissioner Frank Dwyer fueled the suspicions of a “sick-out” in protest of the mandate pointing its number is very unusual.
City Hall wasn’t able to provide the vaccination status of the firefighters engaged in the suspected sick-out.
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