After reaching Mayor Bill de Blasio’s vaccine mandate deadline, thousands of firefighters, police officers, and city workers have been placed on unpaid leave for not getting vaccinated.
The New York City Mayor’s Office released data reporting that as of Sunday night, over 20,000 municipal workers remained unvaccinated.
De Blasio shared in a tweet Saturday night that 91% of city workers had been vaccinated. That percentage was at 83% Friday night.
A spokesperson for the mayor, Mitch Schwartz, told Fox News on Monday that “Nine thousand people [were] placed on leave without pay today”. “The rest are in various stages of having their accommodation requests reviewed. They can be at work,” he added.
The president of the Uniformed Firefighters Association union, Andy Ansbro, stated that it is “not entirely clear how many fire companies will be closed today” but he is “expecting dozens”.
“We’re here today because of a mandate that was put on the, you know, our members, but also on all New York City employees given nine days to make a life changing decision on their career or whether or not they can take a vaccine,” Ansbro explained.
Fire union officials have been asking for more time to make the decision. James McCarthy, the president of the FDNY- Uniformed Fire Officers Association, said “We were trying to negotiate more time to make these decisions, just like the de Blasio administration, gave every other organization every other year in this city”.
As of Sunday evening, the police department reported an 84% vaccination rate and the fire department said 80% of its employees were vaccinated.
Because of expected staffing shortages, the fire department has prepared to close 20% of its fire companies and have 20% fewer ambulances running. De Blasio announced that the sanitation department will move from regular 8-hour shifts to 12-hour shifts and work Sundays so trash doesn’t collect.
