New York City mandates Covid vaccines for all private sector employees

This new move, which de Blasio announced on Monday on MSNBC, means that everyone working in the city will now be subject to a vaccine mandate.

“The more universal they are, the more likely employees will say okay, it’s time. I want to do this. Because you can not jump from one industry to another or from one company to another,” de Blasio said. “It’s something that needs to be universal to protect us all.”

At a news conference later on Monday, de Blasio said the vaccine mandate is the best way to avoid a return to a closure of companies and other public events ordered by other countries as Covid cases continue to rise.

“We have to take very bold measures. We are seeing restrictions start to come back. We are seeing shutdowns,” he said. “We can not let those restrictions come back. We can not have shutdowns in New York.”

Details on how the rules will apply to businesses are to be made public on December 15, and de Blasio said the city will hold discussions with businesses from time to time about those rules. The rules will not allow employees to opt out of vaccination through regular testing, as a proposed federal mandate for employers with 100 or more workers would do. And that will require workers to have at least one vaccination dose before the December 27 deadline.

The penalty that will be imposed on companies that do not enforce the mandate was not disclosed.

“It’s part of life that there have to be some consequences,” de Blasio said. “We’ll find out what makes sense between now and December 15th.”

The mayor said the overwhelming majority of businesses have complied with an earlier city rule requiring customers to show proof of vaccination, including at city restaurants, health clubs and entertainment venues. “It’s been great, [there have been] very few times have we actually had to punish people, “the mayor said.

De Blasio said the need for the new rules is a triple threat that increases the potential for further cases – the emergence of the Omicron variant, the emergence of cold weather that forces people to gather to be inside more often, and the expectation about holiday gatherings in the weeks ahead.

The mandate itself begins just four days before the end of de Blasio’s eight-year term. He told reporters he had spoken to elected mayor Eric Adams, who is currently traveling abroad. Although he said he would not speak for Adams, he is convinced the new mayor wants to follow the advice of doctors and keep the vaccine mandate in place when he takes office.

“In every conversation we’ve had about fighting Covid, he’s been really consistent on the point that he feels the urgency of these new threats and that he understands that my job is to keep New Yorkers safe until December 31, “he said. . “I’m very, very happy with the conversations we’ve had.”

And he said the medical professionals he has spoken to are united in the need to increase the vaccination rate, and their belief that a vaccine mandate will work to do so.

Children ages 5-11 in New York must now also show evidence of at least one shot before gaining access to indoor dining, fitness or entertainment, the mayor announced.

Adults must now show evidence of two vaccinations for these areas.

The mayor is convinced that the mandates hold in court.

“Our health commissioner has put a number of mandates in place. They have won in court, the state court, the federal court every single time. And that’s because they are universal and consistent. And they are about protecting the public right now from a clear and present danger. , “said de Blasio.

City employees were already subject to vaccine mandates. But a federal mandate for companies with 100 or more employees to require vaccines or weekly testing of their employees has been put on hold due to court challenges. Many large employers, including some Wall Street banks and technology companies with offices in the city, have their own vaccine mandates in place.

Surprising message

The announcement surprised business leaders.

“We had no heads up,” Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of Partnership for New York City, an influential business group, told CNN Monday in a telephone interview.

Wylde said she was “surprised” to learn about the new health restrictions through the media because local leaders would typically give business a message about such a shift.

“It is unclear whether the city has the authority to issue such a mandate,” Wylde said, adding that the city’s business leaders are “very supportive” of vaccines.

Although New York’s employers are not against vaccine mandates, Wylde said business leaders are looking for more information on how this new order will be enforced and whether employees can opt out through testing. City workers were already facing such a mandate.

“Employers do not want to be enforcement agents,” Wylde said.

But the head of the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce praised the move.

“I do not think it will be a problem when it comes to private companies. Most of them are already vaccinated and require it,” said Helena Natt, CEO of the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce.

Natt said the relocation of the city is a “next step” in what needs to be done.

“We’re monitoring Covid, Delta, now we’re monitoring Omicron,” she said. “We are keeping an eye on science and if the people of New York can see to it that they can do everything in their power to ensure [they] are safe and colleagues are safe. “

Business leaders are also concerned about navigating the maze of federal, state and urban health policies. For example, unlike the city, the state of New York does not have a vaccine mandate for private employers. And the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate for employers with 100 or more workers has been held up by court challenges.

Wylde said there is concern about the lack of coordination of federal, state and urban health policies. “Public health protocols in general and vaccine mandates should be coordinated and consistent with each other,” Wylde said.

But de Blasio said the companies he spoke to about Covid supported a mandate.

“I have heard from so many business leaders, including in these sectors, such as finance and technology, that the best thing for them is for the government to take the lead,” he said. “It’s always better for the private sector if the government sets a single, universal standard so they do not have to … say to their employees, ‘Hey, this is something we have to do on our own.’ “

He said that what they really do not want to see is the kind of increase in cases that require a shutdown or home orders that are now in place in parts of Europe.

“Our healthcare management was convinced that this was a step we could and should take,” he said. “We know from extensive conversations over months with private employers what their concerns are. The most important thing I’ve heard … is that we need to avoid shutdowns.”

– CNN’s Vanessa Yurkevich contributed to this report

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