The City of Oakland is hoping to impose a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for all its employees, officials announced Thursday.
Under the new policy, city employees must submit their vaccination status by October 15 and be fully vaccinated by November 1.
A draft of the policy was sent to the city’s union labor partners, who must agree to its terms for it to be enacted.
The mandate would apply to all full and part-time workers, interns and volunteers, all of whom could take two hours paid time to receive the shot.
The new rules would allow for exemptions based on medical and “sincerely held” religious beliefs, however those individuals would be subjected to frequent testing.
The decision was based on "Alameda County Public Health, the California Department of Public Health, the CDC, and the recent rise in COVID-19 cases."
"The public health data is clear: vaccination is the most effective tool we have to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, protect against hospitalizations and death, and bring an end to this pandemic that has killed 4.4 million people around the globe," city officials said in their release. "Vaccinations are safe and effective and, at this point, essential; they are free and easy to get."
Cases in Alameda County are three times more likely for unvaccinated people than those who are.
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