8% Of State Employees Seek Vaccine Exemptions: Report

OLYMPIA, WA — Nearly 4,800 of Washington's 60,000 government employees filed for exemptions to Gov. Jay Inslee's vaccine mandate by Tuesday morning, equaling about 8 percent of the state workers under orders to become fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Oct. 18 or face termination, according to The Seattle Times.

Inslee announced the mandate for state employees and health care workers in August, followed by similar requirements for teachers and other school employees. Washington's mandate is more stringent than those in other states, providing narrow guidelines for medical exemptions and "sincerely held religious beliefs," and does not include a weekly testing alternative.

The Washington Federation of State Employees, representing 45,000 state workers, initially filed a legal challenge to extend the deadline but dropped the effort after ratifying an agreement with the state, which secured an extra day of leave in 2022 and allows workers to receive vaccinations while on the clock. A separate lawsuit filed Friday on behalf of more than 90 state employees seeks to have the mandate overturned as unconstitutional and an overreach of power.

According to the Times, two dozen state agencies provided data on exemptions sought by Tuesday, including 1,400 filed within the Department of Social and Health Services, more than 500 from the Washington State Department of Transportation, and nearly 400 at Washington State Patrol. The newspaper found the majority of exemptions were sought on religious grounds. Agency leaders must make determinations on each claim by the October deadline.

>>Read more in The Seattle Times.