Healthcare consortium Kaiser Permanente announced Tuesday that thousands of its employees in the U.S. have been suspended from work after opting not to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Kaiser disclosed that about 2,200 of its employees who failed to comply with a companywide vaccine mandate were placed on unpaid administrative leave as of Oct. 1. The suspensions have impacted about two percent of Kaiser's total U.S. workforce.
In a statement released Tuesday aftrenoon, Kaiser leadership said employees who had not yet received the jab had until Dec. 1 before they would be permanently terminated from their jobs. The organization stated it was working with suspended employees to get them vaccinated, and that the number of outstanding cases was "declining daily."
"We will continue to work with this group of employees to allay concerns and educate them about the vaccines, their benefits and risks," the statement said.
Kaiser Permanente is the fifth-largest employer in Los Angeles County, according to 2020 data, with over 41,000 residents working for the organization.
