NYC Teachers Must Be Vaccinated Against COVID, De Blasio Says

NEW YORK CITY — New York City public school staff won't be able to test out of this requirement: a strict coronavirus vaccine mandate.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said teachers, principals and other staff must have at least one dose of vaccine by Sept. 27.

“This will help ensure everyone is safe,” he said Monday.

Today we’re announcing that ALL @NYCSchools faculty and staff must be vaccinated against #COVID19 this school year. Join me #onStatenIsland for more. https://t.co/zfSxXFII2v
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) August 23, 2021

The mandate is the latest strict vaccination measure set by de Blasio to boost shots as the highly contagious delta variant spreads.

De Blasio said the city will immediately start bargaining with school unions.

Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, quickly issued a statement about the mandate.

"While the city is asserting its legal authority to establish this mandate, there are many implementation details, including provisions for medical exceptions, that by law must be negotiated with the UFT and other unions, and if necessary, resolved by arbitration," he said.

The announcement coincides with the FDA's full approval of the Pfizer vaccine — a step that could allow similar sweeping mandates by employers and businesses nationwide, Bloomberg reported.

Chancellor Meisha Ross Porter said roughly 63 percent of school staff have been vaccinated so far. She said the mandate applies to all 148,000 school staff.