Metro To Require COVID Vaccine Or Weekly Testing For Employees

WASHINGTON, DC — Metro is implementing a new policy where employees will be required to provide proof of vaccination to COVID-19 or negative coronavirus test results on a weekly basis.

The new policy, which takes effect Sept. 7, allows employees to request accommodation for medical or religious reasons, Metro General Manager and CEO Paul Wiedefeld said in a memo issued Tuesday.

The vaccine and testing requirements will apply to both union and non-union Metro employees, as well as contractors. All new Metro hires will be required to show proof of vaccination before starting work at Metro, Wiedefeld wrote.

“Failure to comply will result in immediate ineligibility to work and progressive discipline,” he wrote.

According to Wiedefeld, 45 percent of Metro’s employees are fully vaccinated, with the number as high as 79 percent in some transit agency departments.

“However, we need to do better to protect our workforce and our customers from Covid infection, especially given the prevalence of the Delta variant in our region,” he said in the memo.

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689, which represents Metro employees, said it supports Metro’s decision on vaccinations.

“Vaccines are the most effective way to save lives during this pandemic. I myself caught COVID and can tell you that I still live with the health consequences to this day,” Raymond Jackson, president and business agent for ATU Local 689, said in a statement Tuesday. “WMATA’s proposal will still allow members to opt-out of the shot in favor of weekly testing.”

However, Jackson said the union is continuing to negotiate with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority to get Metro to provide weekly coronavirus testing and pay for the testing for employees who choose not to get vaccinated.

In his memo, Wiedefeld said the expense and scheduling of the weekly tests will be the responsibility of the individual employees, not Metro.

Starting Aug. 30, Metro will begin providing assistance to employees with uploading their vaccination cards to the employee portal.

Without proof of vaccination, employees will be responsible for getting weekly negative COVID-19 tests results and uploading the results to the employee portal. Metro said it will accept any type of test, including PCR and rapid tests.

"This new mandatory testing requirement is similar to those required by the District, Maryland, and Virginia for government employees, and will help strengthen our collective defenses against the virus and its variants," Wiedefeld said in the memo.

Under a federal mask mandate, anyone traveling on Metro trains and buses is required to wear a mask to help protect the public and employees against the spread of COVID-19.

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