Hamilton police announce mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy for members

The Hamilton Police Service has announced a new mandatory vaccine policy for both uniform and civilian members that requires employees to provide their COVID-19 shot status to the department by Oct. 4.

In a case where someone does not have a shot by the deadline and they're not accommodated under an exemption covered by Ontario's human rights code, they'll have to provide a negative test for the virus before the first shift of each of their rotations, said spokesperson Jackie Penman.

The cost of that test will be covered by the employee in question, she added.

"As a service, we believe mandatory vaccinations are just one of the ways we can reassure our members and the public that we have taken the necessary steps to protect ourselves and the community we serve," police Chief Frank Bergen said in a media release Wednesday.

It referenced concerns connected to the fourth wave of the pandemic and the delta variant, saying the department is obligated to provide a safe workplace for staff and members of the public.

"We took a robust approach in advocating to get our members vaccinated as soon as possible," said Bergen. "Now we need to be leaders in making those vaccines mandatory."

However, police noted that if a staff member is unable to be vaccinated "due to a protected ground," the service has a "duty to accommodate" under the Human Rights Code.

Jaimi Bannon, president of the Hamilton Police Association (HPA), which represents members of the service, said the policy appears to be consistent with other police departments across the province.

The "majority" of members were vaccinated when doses first became available to them, she added, though she could not provide a percentage of police employees who have had a shot.

"As a police association we encourage all members that can get vaccinated to do so, for the health and safety of themselves, their colleagues and the community," said Bannon.

"But we understand they can't all be vaccinated and for those people there has to be accommodations or alternative options, which the HPS has offered."

Union will guide members through policy

Hamilton's announcement comes after Toronto police said Tuesday that all of its members must provide proof of their COVID-19 vaccination status by Sept. 13.

The Toronto Police Association has said it does not support the mandatory vaccination announcement.

Bannon would not go so far as to say the HPA supports the Hamilton police policy, but said the union had discussions with the service before the announcement and has no plans to challenge it at this point.

"We expressed our concerns or our ideas at the table. In  the end … the police service makes the police and we're here to support and guide our members through the policy."

The City of Hamilton is also considering a requirement that all city employees be fully-vaccinated.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger has called a special council meeting for Thursday to discuss the proposed policy.