Last week my company announced vaccine mandate with full vaccination required by 10/4/21 (or you will be terminated). My office staff participated in #walkoutwednesday this week (Along with a few hundred other people across our company) and this evening the local news reported that my employer, a large healthcare network in the region, has “added another exemption” and extended the deadline for employees to get fully vaccinated. The added exemption is an antibody test showing COVID antibodies. So, I realize this isn’t what we want yet, but a small amount of protesting has yielded a small amount of change and now they’ve given us more time to really ramp up the pressure! Since most of the network is already short staffed I can’t imagine they can easily fire all the dissenters. And people are really ready to lose their jobs over this!
I also would add — don’t assume your large employer has their legal ducks in a row over this because my company (15,000 employees) has embarrassed themselves more than once by rolling out things that had to be retracted due to legal issues. Use the resources on GAW to put up a hell of a battle.
Stick together and fight!!
My employer (33,000 employees) is enforcing the mandate too. I think a lot of support services will refuse it but nurses are caving left and right due to the fear of not being able to find another job in healthcare without the mandate. When I told my director I’m willing to get terminated she told me I was her only direct report out of all leadership not complying. I’m so sad not more people are standing up. Losing your career is hard but risking your life for a job is stupid.
I’m sorry to hear that. My manager showed me communication from other managers in our specialty service line and they have many staff (MA’s mostly and a few nurses) and even a few providers pushing back. I can’t believe it’s coming to this but I may very well leave healthcare over it. And I’ve been a nurse for 30 years I love it.
It is sad… I commend you in your thirty years of service. I’ve been a nurse for 10 years and I’ve been on the hunt for a non healthcare job. It makes me so sad to even say that, I love being a nurse. I just can’t believe organizations would put us in this position in the middle of a nursing shortage. I hate to contribute but I won’t get the jab and none of my peers understand why I’m being this way… :(
I’m sorry to hear this! It is sad. But even if I felt the vaccine was safe, this mandating stuff has got to stop! I commend you for standing strong. I’m going to try using the religious exemption. We will see. 🤷‍♀️