Syracuse, N.Y. -- Only 56% of city workers have shown proof of Covid vaccination despite an order that they do so or test weekly by Sept. 7, Mayor Ben Walsh said today.
That doesn’t mean only 56% of city employees are vaccinated, Walsh stressed. But more than a month after the mandate took effect, the administration doesn’t know exactly how many city workers have gotten vaccinated because many haven’t yet filled out the necessary compliance paperwork.
Those employees have until the end of the month to come into compliance before facing disciplinary action, which “starts with a written reprimand and ends with termination,” Walsh said.
It’s unclear how many of the 44% of city workers who haven’t shown proof of vaccination are unvaccinated and how many are already complying with testing requirements, said Greg Loh, the mayor’s chief policy officer. Walsh said he’s tasked department heads and supervisors with figuring out who fits into each category.
In mid-August, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon put in place a vaccine-or-test requirement for all school employees. State employees face a similar mandate, which began Oct. 12.
Despite public attention on specific city departments – particularly the police department, whose union balked at the possibility of a full vaccine mandate when Walsh announced his vaccine-or-test plan in August -- the 56% statistic is pretty consistent across departments, he said.
Walsh blamed Syracuse’s status as the only local municipality with a vaccine-or-test requirement for issues with the mandate’s rollout. He said technology issues may be stopping some employees from complying even though they’re vaccinated.
“We’re making progress, but we’re not all the way there yet,” he said.
Part of the Syracuse mandate requires new employees to have at least one dose of the vaccine before starting work with the city. Loh said all 15 new employees hired since Sept. 7 have complied with that requirement.
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