A number of major American companies are beginning to impose vaccination on their employees. One example is Citigroup, which has set a deadline of January 14. In all, almost 16,000 unvaccinated employees could be subject to dismissal.
Compulsory vaccination, a radical measure
Citigroup has e-mailed its employees that they will be dismissed without compensation if they do not get vaccinated by January 14. This measure would affect over 16,000 employees, or 10% of the total workforce.
This comes as no surprise to the group's employees. Indeed, at the end of October, the bank had already warned that it was being forced by the Biden administration to ask all its employees for proof of vaccination. Since the end of the year, a decree in the United States has required private-sector employees to be vaccinated before going to work. Since January 4, this rule has been gradually extended to the whole country. There are a few exceptions, notably for employees who only stay on the premises for a limited time.
When the decree was published, as employees were gradually returning to face-to-face work, Citigroup's Human Resources Director reminded us that " vaccinated employees are also the best way of ensuring the health and safety of all our colleagues ".
Over 90% of Citigroup employees vaccinated
Citigroup reports that, to date, over 90% of its employees have been vaccinated or have met the conditions required to keep their jobs. The bank has even decided to offer $200 to those who are still reluctant to take the plunge.
US banking group Citigroup to lay off non-vaccinated employees pic.twitter.com/IXEAvefQFw
- BFMTV (@BFMTV) January 8, 2022
Citigroup is not the only company to have imposed such radical measures. A few months ago, United Airlines fired 200 employees who refused to be vaccinated. For its part, the giant Google has warned that its unvaccinated employees could face a pay cut or even dismissal. In many groups, compulsory vaccination is becoming the norm.
To avoid penalizing their employees, others prefer to reinforce telecommuting. Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, for example, ask their unvaccinated employees to continue working remotely.
Numerous legal actions against compulsory vaccination
The text aimed at making vaccination compulsory in all companies with over 100 employees has been blocked by multiple legal challenges. It is now up to the Supreme Court to decide. But following the initial debates, and even though they have always up to now validated anti-Covid decrees, the judges could bury this law for good, which would represent a setback for Joe Biden, whose objective was to relaunch the vaccination campaign. At present, only 62% of Americans are vaccinated against Covid-19, compared with over 90% of the French.