Delta Air Lines to require all new hires to be vaccinated against COVID-19

Delta Air Lines to require all new hires to be vaccinated against COVID-19
Delta Air Lines' CEO Ed Bastia
Avatar of Harry Johnson
Written by Harry Johnson

Delta Air Lines, which has 75,000 employees, is taking employees’ vaccination a step further than other major corporations.

  • CEO Bastian expects to have Delta staff fully vaccinated at a 75%-to-80% rate in the near future
  • The new policy will go into effect on Monday, May 16
  • Employees who do not get vaccinated could face restrictions, such as not being able to work on international flights

Delta Air Lines’ CEO Ed Bastian announced this week that 60% of the airlineโ€™s staff have received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine, and he expects to have employees fully vaccinated at a 75%-to-80% rate in the near future.ย 

Delta Air Lines has said that it will need new employees to have already gotten their coronavirus shots, though there will not be a mandate for current workers as they have made โ€œgreat progressโ€ towards herd immunity.

CEO Bastian acknowledged that it would be unfair to force current employees to get vaccinated if they haveย โ€œsome kind of philosophical issueโ€ย with it, but that courtesy does not extend to new hires.ย 

โ€œThis is an important move to protect Deltaโ€™s people and customers, ensuring the airline can safely operate as demand returns and as it accelerates through recovery and into the future,โ€ย Delta Air Lines announced in a statement today. The new policy will go into effect on Monday, May 16.

Delta’s spokesperson said the current vaccination rate within the company representsย โ€œgreat progress to achieve herd immunity within our workforce.โ€

The employees who do not get vaccinated could face restrictions, such as not being able to work on international flights.

Delta Air Lines, which has 75,000 employees, is taking things a step further than other major corporations, as most, such as Amazon and Target, have simply tried incentivizing employees to get vaccinated, either by giving them a chance to get the shots during work hours or offering bonuses for new hires.ย 

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced in December that companies can require employees to get vaccinated, with the two exemptions being disabilities or religious reasons.ย 

American Airlines has also offered employees an extra day off next year to employees who get their vaccinations.ย 

New guidance from the CDC still requires masks when using transportation such as airplanes, despite the mandate being lifted for fully vaccinated individuals, indoors and outdoors, unless required by a business.

About the author

Avatar of Harry Johnson

Harry Johnson

Harry Johnson has been the assignment editor for eTurboNews for mroe than 20 years. He lives in Honolulu, Hawaii, and is originally from Europe. He enjoys writing and covering the news.

Share to...