COVID-19 vaccine mandate for Hamilton city staff could cost over $7.3M: report

The union representing Hamilton transit workers is lambasting city council for its plans to follow through with its mandatory vaccine policy, despite a recent staff report that said it could cost between $2.7 million and $7.3 million.

"There is potential for individual termination arbitrations for every affected employee, which would land the city in costly ongoing litigation," said Rob Doucette, vice president of Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 107.

The city originally said all its workers who didn't have two vaccine shots or an approved medical exemption would be fired as of May 31, despite a city report saying the mandate should be scrapped.

Days before the deadline, councillors voted to give workers four more months to comply before firing people who don't have two doses of vaccine.

A recent report by city staff presented at a general issues committee meeting on Aug. 4 says as of July 20, there were 234 unvaccinated employees doing ongoing rapid tests and 30 who were on unpaid leave because they're unvaccinated.

Based on language in the city's agreements with unions, if the policy is implemented, 134 workers would be fired as of Oct. 1 and 130 would be on indefinite unpaid leaves of absence. The terms of an individual's employment would determine that outcome. 

Some cities have already implemented vaccine mandates. In Toronto, the deadline to comply was Jan. 2, after which 461 employees were terminated.

Toronto said more than 98 per cent of its workforce was fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, Burlington repealed its policy on March 22.

In Hamilton, the recent report says if an arbitrator sides with the unions, it would cost the city between $2,793,810.72 and $7,386,737.99.

The city has already spent $93,272.07 in legal fees, as of May 31.

Hamilton's medical officer of health, Dr. Elizabeth Richardson, has strongly urged the public to get vaccinated and has promoted getting all four vaccine doses.

Although Michelle Baird, the city's COVID-19 operations chief, previously said there isn't a need for "broad mandates" anymore.

Doucette said if police officers and teachers aren't getting mandatory vaccines, transit workers and city staff shouldn't need them either.

"Long-time loyal employees now facing termination if not vaccinated have been working on the front lines, serving the public, through the worst of the pandemic. It took us more than one and a half years just to get basic [personal protective equipment] yet we kept the service going," he said.

The report says the arbitrator is expected to make a decision on Sept. 30.