Texas hospital mandates Covid-19 vaccination as a condition of employment, employees walk out
On June 7th, Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas placed nearly 200 staff members on a 2-week unpaid suspension for failure to follow their vaccination policy that required all employees to receive both doses of the vaccine by that Monday morning. If employees fail to acquire their vaccine by June 21st, the hospital says they will begin the termination process. While the federal government's guidance has allowed employers to require vaccination of on-site employees, people who advise companies say that many remain hesitant because of guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Non-compliant employees have filed a lawsuit against the hospital for the policy, citing that they are "“forcing its employees to be human ‘guinea pigs’ as a condition for continued employment.” Also on Monday, the Governor of Texas signed a law prohibiting employers from requiring proof of vaccination. At this time it is unclear how this will affect the mounting lawsuit at Houston Methodist.
See "Texas hospital mandates Covid-19 vaccination as a condition of employment, employees walk out", Jesus Jiménez and Niraj Chokshi, The Seattle Times, June 9, 2021