Several prominent New York City unions are requesting that the city equal vaccination incentive payments for already-vaccinated employees.
Public Employees To Receive $500 Bonus Once Vaccinated
In a recently published article in Newsweek, New York City's current vaccination requirement gives a $500 bonus payment to public workers who get vaccinated by October 29. This includes police officers and firemen, but there are other unions who demanded to get the bonus as well.
Meanwhile, unvaccinated public workers will be put on unpaid leave beginning November 1, and regular COVID testing will no longer be a possibility. The incentive is unfair to employees who had a jab before the offer went into effect, according to the Municipal Labor Committee, which represents a handful of public employee unions in the city.
To address the demand of other unions whose members were already vaccinated prior to the offer, the organization has launched talks with the New York City Office of Labor Relations in order to get the same compensation for all, according to a published article in ABC7.
Statements from the Different Unions
The United Federation of Teachers (UFT), one of the group's unions, issued a statement supporting the demand for incentive payments. The organization expressed their displeasure with the mayor's offer of $500 to unvaccinated staff.
The UFT is a member of the Municipal Labor Committee, which has commenced the impact negotiating process with the NYC Office of Labor Relations. Additionally, the MLC and its affiliated unions demanded that all municipal workers who had been vaccinated be compensated $500, according to a published article in News Knowledgia.
However, the Police Benevolent Association, New York City's biggest police union, said that it will sue the city to overturn the ordinance. Vaccinations are frequently referred to as a personal medical choice, and the union opposed the vaccine mandate of the city.
Mayor Bill de Blasio Explained the City's Vaccine Mandate
Mayor Bill de Blasio earlier said that a requirement for municipal workers has been on his mind for some weeks. He told a news organization that the city has to stop the COVID-19 period by safeguarding public personnel.
He also added that all public personnel, including police officers, EMTs, firemen, and many more, come into direct touch with their fellow New Yorkers. They must be secure. Their families must be secure, but they must also convince all New Yorkers that if they work with a government employee, they will be vaccinated. There will be no danger to anybody.
In a published article in Daily News, municipal workers are subject to the obligation, which affects almost 100,000 people. When the requirement was issued, New York City certified that 71 percent of those employees had previously gotten at least one dose of the COVID vaccination.
Needless to say, a second rule enacted by de Blasio in August also required teachers and school employees to get vaccinated; but it did not include a $500 reward. The city has provided a $100 incentive to New Yorkers who get immunized since August.
