St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital demands vaccination of employees

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis is now requiring employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or be laid off.

A letter was sent to all employees on Wednesday afternoon by President and CEO Dr James Downing outlining the new mandatory vaccination policy.

In the letter, Downing cites the dangers of the Delta variant and its rapid spread as part of the reason for the tenure.

St. Jude employees must be vaccinated against COVID-19 by September 9, unless they are medically or religiously exempt. The eight weeks until then are intended to give employees time to plan and complete the vaccination process.

Any employee who refuses to be vaccinated will be placed on unpaid leave of absence for two weeks.

At the end of this period, if the employees have not started the vaccination process, they will be fired.

Downing says the requirement is to ensure St. Jude’s patients and their families are treated in the safest environment possible.

Read the letter below.

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