43 unvaccinated City of London employees on unpaid leave
Meetings begin Wednesday with city staff refusing COVID-19 vaccine
The City of London is planning to put 43 unvaccinated employees on unpaid leave unless they comply with the municipality's vaccine policy. This includes 19 full time and 24 casual employees who are meeting with administration beginning Wednesday and will be placed on a 30-day unpaid leave.
A spokesperson said the employees work in departments across the organization and do not include city councillors, who have a separate policy.
In a statement, the municipality said 99 per cent of staff complied with the Mandatory Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination Administrative Policy and submitted the information required.
"Small percentage" of city staff
"There will be no service impact to the public as a result of any disciplinary actions," said city manager Lynne Livingstone, adding that the staff are from various service areas within the municipality. She said that the number of people placed on leave is a small percentage of the city's employees.
"The health and well being of our staff and of the community has been our priority throughout the COVID-19 pandemic; enacting this policy has been part of that," she said.
A spokesperson for the city was unclear about what will happen after the 30-day period of unpaid leave, saying that the city will re-evaluate the circumstances to decide if further discipline is required.