NYC Now PushingTo Rehire Fired Unvaccinated City Workers

The swathe of city workers that were fired due to the vaccine mandate is now being pulled back in on the condition of getting fully vaccinated.

In February, Mayor Eric Adams fired more than 1,400 workers who failed to comply with the vaccine mandate. The mandate required vaccinations as a workplace safety rule. In March, Adams was the target of criticism for exempting athletes and performers not based in New York City from the city’s vaccine mandate, while keeping the rule in place for private and public workers.

Source: Reuters

Four months since the removal of unvaccinated city employees, around 600 unvaccinated non-Department of Education workers are receiving a letter with details, and DOE employees are expected to receive a letter later in the summer. Internal memos delivered Friday to unvaccinated ex-employees told recipients they have an “opportunity to return to employment if [they] become fully vaccinated.” The ex-workers have until June 30 to get the first dose and make arrangements for a second dose by August 15.

“Once you provide proof of full vaccination (both doses), you will be reinstated to your civil service title at your most recent salary within two weeks of submission of proof of full vaccination, with no change to benefits or break in service,” said Marisa Caggiano, the NYPD’s assistant commissioner for human resources in a letter to fired agency workers.

A city spokesperson mentioned the letters, adding that 97% of workers are vaccinated and that the goal has always been “vaccination rather than termination.”