United says 273 employees said they were vaccinated after the company said they would be fired due to the company’s strict vaccine mandate

• The number of unvaccinated United workers rose from 593 to 320 after being made redundant.

• The carrier has demanded that all non-exempt U.S. employees be fully immunized by September 27 or made redundant.

• More than 99% of the company’s non-exempt U.S. workforce has been vaccinated against COVID-19.

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Nearly half of unvaccinated United Airlines workers have now provided proof of vaccination since being threatened with layoff, the carrier said Thursday.

United has the strictest employee vaccination policy of any airline in the United States. United on Wednesday announced that more than 99% of its 67,000 U.S. employees were vaccinated against COVID-19, minus the 3%, or roughly 2,000 employees, who have requested religious or medical exemptions and will still be working. The airline’s policy, established on August 6, stipulated that all non-exempt workers must be vaccinated by September 27 or be made redundant.

All but 593 employees were vaccinated by the deadline, and United said it would begin the separation process on Thursday for unvaccinated, non-exempt workers. But since Wednesday’s announcement, the number of employees without proof of vaccination has fallen to 320, down by almost half.

According to United, the reduction is mainly due to employees uploading their vaccination cards late, and management expects the number to decline further after one-on-one meetings with employees find out they are indeed vaccinated.

“Our vaccination policy continues to prove that the requirements work – in less than 48 hours the number of unvaccinated employees who began the company separation process has been reduced by almost half, from 593 to 320 . This means 99.5% of United’s workforce US employees have now chosen to be vaccinated, excluding those who have requested an exemption, “United said in a statement.

Other U.S. airlines have yet to make employee vaccinations mandatory, although some are trying to encourage shooting through rewards or punishment. Delta Air Lines announced in August that unvaccinated workers would be required to pay an additional $ 200 for the company’s health insurance plan, while Southwest is offering 16 hours of extra pay to vaccinated workers. Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said he didn’t believe in the company’s obligation to vaccinate, but added that the federal government could implement requirements.

“So at Southwest Airlines, we may be compelled by federal law to require that employees be vaccinated, and we’ll be prepared for that,” Kelly told staff, according to CNBC.

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