City of Saint John employees will have to prove they're fully vaccinated or undergo regular testing and wear a mask under a new policy approved by city council.

Councillors approved the directive for a vaccine policy in a near-unanimous vote after little debate during Tuesday evening's council meeting.

The vaccine and test policy will be implemented by Sept. 20, council heard, and will apply to city employees and council members.

Employees won't have to disclose whether they've been vaccinated, but if they don't provide proof of vaccination they will have to wear masks and get tested.

The policy applies to employees who "attend the workplace." The city employs about 800 people, including Saint John police.

City manager John Collin will draft the policy and amend it as new information about COVID-19 becomes available.

Coun. Paula Radwan was the only dissenting vote. She told council she objects to the way the policy was brought forward. She said council should be involved in amending and creating policies.

"I do feel that it is the responsibility of council to be putting [policies] forth … and for them to be coming back when they're amended to council," she said.

Collin will also decide when members of the public who access city-owned buildings will be required to voluntarily show proof of vaccination or wear a mask.

Mayor Donna Reardon said the city is not currently tracking its employees' vaccine status.

She said she expects the tests will be rapid tests funded by the province, not the current tests used in COVID-19 assessment centres — but those details could change.

"There's lots of potential scenarios with this," she said.

The province has already announced it will require vaccination for all provincial employees, including civil servants and health-care workers. The City of Fredericton also unanimously approved a policy last week to require vaccination or regular testing for employees.

City of Moncton spokesperson Isabelle LeBlanc said the city didn't have a vaccine policy as of Tuesday, but a survey was sent to employees "to gain a better picture on our overall organizational status related to employee vaccination."

Once the results come back on Monday the city will have a better idea of how it will proceed, she said.