Hundreds of United Airlines employees are facing termination after failing to comply with the airline’s vaccine mandate.
On Tuesday, the airline stated it had started the process of discharging 593 employees after the workers chose not to adhere to the company’s safety policy and receive a COVID-19 vaccine by a deadline that was set for Monday, CNBC reported.
Due to the looming threat of being let go from the company, more employees decided to follow protocol and upload proof of a COVID-19 vaccination.
On Thursday, the airline announced the number of unvaccinated employees fell from nearly 600 to 320, Yahoo! Finance reported.
“Our vaccine policy continues to prove requirements work — in less than 48 hours, the number of unvaccinated employees who began the process of being separated from the company has been cut almost in half, dropping from 593 to 320,” the airline said in a statement.
Earlier in the week, a United Airlines spokesman stated if an unvaccinated terminated employee wanted to change course and follow the company’s safety policy, then the company would do what it could to work with them.
However, for those who are fired and make the choice to remain unvaccinated, the company said those workers will be ineligible to receive unemployment benefits.
Around 2,000 United Airlines workers have received exemptions from following the mandate, due to religious or medical reasons. However, these employees have been placed on temporary unpaid leave to protect the safety of others, including passengers, until Oct. 2, The Chicago Tribune reported.
Although other airlines haven’t made it mandatory that their employees receive the COVID-19 vaccination, that could change, if President Biden’s vaccination plan is enacted, which would require all large companies to ensure that their staff has received the COVID-19 vaccine, CNBC reported.