Two Canadian airlines have decided that all their employees who fail to be fully vaccinated will face unpaid leave and in some cases termination of employment.
Canada’s WestJet Airlines said employees who fail to verify their vaccination status by September 24 or have received a full vaccination by October 30 will face unpaid leave or termination of employment.
“As part of its vaccine mandate, the airline will not provide the test as a substitute for vaccination,” WestJet said in a statement.
On the other end, United Airlines Holdings Inc. has set a deadline of September 27 for employees to submit proof of full vaccination. The company said that unpaid personal or medical leave for unpaid employees will begin on October 2.
In the case of United Airline, not all employees will get unpaid leave because the airline’s union contract and employment contract allow for paid medical leave. Those who are not exempted will be eliminated.
The two airlines did not say how many of their employees have been vaccinated or how many have declined COVID-19 vaccinations because of medical conditions or religious beliefs.
United Airlines said that employees who work in customer-facing roles such as flight attendants, pilots and gate agents will be on extended leave until the Covid pandemic is over.
And, employees who don’t interact with customers, such as baggage handlers and aircraft fuelers, will learn in mid-October how they can return with new social distancing and mask policies, it added.
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