Delta Airlines is not introducing a mandatory vaccination – but unvaccinated employees of the US airline face disadvantages in the future. So they have to accept losses in salary.
A nationwide compulsory vaccination is not in sight – neither in Germany nor in the USA. The situation is different with employers: they can decide for themselves whether they want their employees to be vaccinated and what measures they take if employees do not want them to. The US airline Delta Airlines is now taking rigorous action.
The company had already announced in May that it would only employ vaccinated employees. But employees who already work at Delta Airlines and do not want to be vaccinated against Covid-19 are also threatened with disadvantages: Unvaccinated employees: starting in November, employees are expected to pay $ 200 a month, CEO Ed Bastian told the workforce in a memo.
Delta Airlines: No paid sick days in the case of corona infection of unvaccinated people
As a reason for the measure, the airline boss cited the high hospital costs in the event of corona illness for employees who are insured through the company. A hospital stay would then cost Delta an average of $ 50,000. This creates a “financial risk” for the company, according to Bastian.
In addition, from the end of September unvaccinated employees will no longer be granted paid sick days if they are absent due to a corona infection. Delta Airlines does not have an explicit vaccination requirement – unlike, for example, at its competitor United Airlines, which requires all employees to have a corona vaccination by autumn. But for most of the previously unvaccinated Delta workforce, the new measures are likely to represent serious cuts.
Delta Airlines is the first US company to introduce such penalties for unvaccinated employees. CEO Ed Bastian points out that Biontech’s corona vaccine received full FDA approval this week: “Now is the time to get vaccinated.” So far, according to Bastian, three quarters of Delta employees have been vaccinated against Covid-19.
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Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
