NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- FDNY firefighters protested outside Gracie Mansion on Thursday as the city's municipal vaccine mandate fast approaches.
It appeared hundreds of demonstrators turned out near the mayor's official residence on the Upper East Side for the 11 a.m. protest. Among those who attended the protest was Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa.
“We, the people, will not comply!” the protesters chanted as they waved U.S. flags and held signs decrying the mandate.
The president of the International Association of Fire Fighters, Ed Kelly, said the city should negotiate with the unions that represent firefighters, police officers and other municipal workers to make sure their concerns are addressed and that they’re being treated fairly.
“Let me make something abundantly clear: the New York City firefighters take COVID seriously. And at the height of this pandemic, when we didn’t know what this virus could do to us, or if we were bringing it home to our children, or bringing it home to our families, the New York City firefighters answered every single call the same way they always have for hundreds of years,” Kelly said. “All they’re asking for today is to be treated with dignity and respect.”
The mandate requires municipal workers to get at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by Friday at 5 p.m.
“Obviously, I'd like everyone to get vaccinated by the end of Friday,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday. “If they don't, they're going off payroll."
James McCarthy, of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, said firefighters aren’t the only city employees who'd be outside Gracie Mansion.
“We’ve heard from a lot of other municipal unions that they’re going to be attending in support of us, as well as many elected officials from New York State and the city,” said McCarthy.
Andrew Ansbro, the president of the UFA, said his union members are not anti-vaccine, just anti-mandate. He said the mandate will mean a “catastrophic” shortage of workers come Monday.
“They feel that is an unnecessary intrusion, and they’re insulted by a mandate,” said Ansbro.
Ansbro said whatever may come next week could be avoided by allowing a testing option.
At the outset of the protest, WCBS 880's Steve Burns reported union officials told some of the 1,500 demonstrators to take down their anti-vaccine signs, including those with swastikas, because this isn't an anti-vaccine protest.
"We are not anti-vaccine, we are here because we are pro-choice. The right to choose," said firefighter Jackie-Michelle Martinez, who believes the previous rule making the unvaccinated get tested had been working and she doesn't think workers have received enough notice about this change. "Nine days is not enough time for people who have mortgages, who have families, who have sick children to make a life-changing decision."
According to the FDNY, about 68% of its department members have gotten at least one dose of the vaccine as of Wednesday.
“The Department must manage the unfortunate fact that a portion of our workforce has refused to comply with a vaccine mandate for all city employees,” said FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro. “We will use all means at our disposal, including mandatory overtime, mutual aid from other EMS providers, and significant changes to the schedules of our members. We will ensure the continuity of operations and safety of all those we have sworn oaths to serve.”
Sources said there’s a potential that as many as 20% of fire companies will be closed and 20% fewer ambulances will be on the road on Monday.
According to the sources, among the necessary changes the FDNY may have to take are mandatory overtime to fill staffing needs; canceled vacations; returning uniformed members in offline positions to the field; and EMS enacting mutual aid from voluntary units (private hospitals) and volunteers.
The sources said department leadership has held virtual meetings with uniformed staff explaining the vaccine mandate and imploring them to comply. The effort will continue throughout the week.
On Wednesday, a Staten Island judge shot down the city Police Benevolent Association’s request of halting the vaccine mandate.
Protests have been prevalent across the city against the mandate, including one just days ago that backed up traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge.
Mayor de Blasio meanwhile is not backing down on the mandate, assuring New Yorkers first responder vacancies will be filled come Monday.
"And in the discussions over weeks and even months with the leaders of all of our agencies there's been a commitment to get this done and to be ready to make sure the work will continue and they have many tools," he said during his Thursday briefing. "We had a lot of times in 2020 where we had huge shortages of personnel because people were out sick with COVID and the NYPD kept things moving and they will again."
The mayor said there will be consequences for sanitation workers who stage a slowdown in protest of the vaccine mandate.
"That's not fair to your fellow workers, that's not fair to your neighbors, that's not fair to your fellow New Yorkers. You're getting paid, you have to do a job," de Blasio said.
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