These NYC City Workers Are The Least Vaccinated Against COVID
Vaccination rates in 24 New York City agencies are below the citywide average as Mayor Bill de Blasio mulls a wider worker mandate.
Matt Troutman,Patch Staff
NYC PATCH
NYC PATCHNEW YORK CITY — Half of New York City's government agencies are below the citywide coronavirus vaccination rate as Mayor Bill de Blasio mulls new strict mandates, data shows.
Vaccination rates in 24 departments are below the 83 percent of all adults citywide who received at least one dose of vaccine, according to data provided by the mayor's office.
De Blasio repeatedly said he's not ruling out new vaccine mandates for city workers, especially after a strict no-opt-out vaccine rule for school staff brought their vaccination rate up to 95 percent. He said Friday that officials are undertaking a "meticulous analysis" of what next steps should be.
"We're looking at all options," he told WNYC's Brian Lehrer. "We put a number of mandates in place and other tools. In the coming days, I'll speak about additional steps for different parts of the city — our workforce and beyond."
The mayor in recent months has embraced vaccination mandates — including a proof of vaccination rule for indoor dining, entertainment and workouts — as a primary weapon in the fight against COVID-19.
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Mandates appear to have largely worked — vaccinations citywide grew 45 percent in the weeks after de Blasio announced the first mandate.
But many pockets in the city, including among its government workers, remain hesitant or outright resistant to getting a coronavirus vaccine.
Unions for teachers, principals and other school staff fought the Department of Education mandate in the courts. The city largely prevailed — a victory de Blasio said could pave the way for stricter, wider mandates for city workers who are currently under a vaccine-or-coronavirus testing rule.
De Blasio repeatedly dodged questions over whether the NYPD will face a strict mandate that requires officers to get vaccinated or else lose pay. The NYPD is the city's second-largest department and many officers have historically been hostile to de Blasio.
Indeed, as many New Yorkers noticed, many NYPD officers failed to follow the city's indoor masking rules throughout the pandemic.
And Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch has hinted at a fight if the city pursues a strict mandate without a testing option.
"In the PBA's view, the COVID-19 vaccine is a medical decision that members must make in consultation with their own healthcare providers," Lynch said in a statement. "We have pushed to make the vaccine available to all members who seek it, and we will continue to protect the rights of members who are not vaccinated. That position has not changed, and neither the city nor the NYPD has advised us of any changes to the current vaccination policy."
About 68 percent of NYPD workers have received at least one dose of vaccine, according to mayor's office data.
That puts cops in the bottom 10 city departments in terms of coronavirus vaccinations. Prominent agencies such as the FDNY, Department of Transportation and Department of Sanitation are all lower.
The rock-bottom numbers for those departments raise whether a strict vaccination rule could create staff shortfalls, particularly for the agency with the lowest vaccination rate – the Department of Correction – which is already struggling.
Staff shortfalls have exacerbated an ongoing crisis at Rikers Island. Benny Boscio, the corrections union head who has sharply criticized de Blasio over the jail's woes, recently confirmed he is not vaccinated against COVID-19.