The airline said Wednesday that the new figure does not include a “small number” of employees who are seeking a medical or religious exemption from vaccination.
“Vaccine requirements work,” United said in a memo to employees.
Six United employees sued United this week claiming that the airline is discriminating against employees who get exemptions from the vaccine mandate by placing them on unpaid leave.
“United’s actions have left Plaintiffs with the impossible choice of either taking the COVID-19 vaccine, at the expense of their religious beliefs and their health, or losing their livelihoods,” lawyers for the employees say in their lawsuit, which was filed in federal district court in
Four of the six employees said they sought religious exemptions based on their belief that the vaccines were developed using aborted fetal tissue, one said she is allergic to eggs and penicillin, and another said he has multiple sclerosis and his neurologist recommended against vaccination. All were granted exemptions but told they would be put on unpaid leave, according to the lawsuit.
The airline said last month that up to 90% of pilots and nearly 80% of flight attendants were vaccinated, but it did not give a figure for all
United said it will start termination proceedings as soon as next Tuesday against employees who are unvaccinated and have not received an exemption.
The airline is among a small group of companies that announced they would require vaccinations even before
Last month, United set a deadline of
Employees who win an exemption will be placed on leave beginning
David Koenig can be reached at www.twitter.com/airlinewriter
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