An article by Sumit Singh in Simple Flying says that United Airlines’ leadership shared on Thursday that it wants to mandate vaccines for employees amid the pandemic, with the Chicago-based carrier looking for its 60,000 staff members to be protected against coronavirus, which continues to rock the United States and the globe.
In a town hall meeting, the United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby spoke about its priorities for its employees amid the global health crisis, with ultimately, he believes that it would be best practice to require vaccines to protect the company’s staff members and moreover, the businessman encourages other firms to have the same targets, adding that he “knows that the vaccines are safe” and that they are critical to ensure the safety of employees and customers as the airline flies around the world.
As reported by CNBC, Kirby said, “The worst thing that I believe I will ever do in my career is the letters that I have written to the surviving family members of co-workers that we have lost to the coronavirus,” adding, “And so, for me, because I have confidence in the safety of the vaccine – and I recognize its controversial – I think the right thing to do is for United Airlines, and for other companies, to require the vaccines and to make them mandatory.”
Airline employees are considered essential workers, so, they are likely to receive the vaccine before many segments of the public, nonetheless, not all carriers in the US are taking the exact same approach as United when it comes to vaccines, with, for instance, American Airlines recently shared that it does not plan to require its staff to receive the vaccine unless they are mandated for entry to specific destinations.
Southwest Airlines announced this week that it would be providing vaccinations for free to its employees and Delta Air Lines is also encouraging its teams to get vaccinated.
The Association of Flight Attendants shared that its focus is on getting crewmembers to access to vaccines and it is looking for a federal approach that prioritizes flight attendants, with at the moment, they are in different tiers for access in each state.
The article goes on to say that altogether, with many airline employees working on the frontline, protection against the virus would undoubtedly help many team members feel comfortable when working.
Additionally, it could help to further reduce risk to customers across services, therefore, it’s unsurprising that United Airlines is keen for those working in the company to get vaccinated as the pandemic continues to take its toll on the aviation industry.
What are your thoughts about United Airlines wanted to make vaccines mandatory for its staff?
Do you think this requirement would be a good move by the company?
Should Australian airlines also mandate vaccinations for all staff, with QANTAS for example not having done so yet, with CEO Alan Joyce after his initial strong stand that all QANTAS travellers would need to be vaccinated before flying now saying travellers would be able to choose, vaccination or quarantine, with the following the last statement from QANTAS in this regard:
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QANTAS GROUP POSITION ON COVID-19 VACCINATION FOR INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
PUBLISHED ON 26TH NOVEMBER 2020 AT 9:38
The Qantas Group takes the view that a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine will be the key to restarting international travel with most of the rest of the world if we’re to avoid undoing the progress Australia has made in controlling this virus.
The only current alternative to this would seem to be an ongoing need for 14 days of quarantine – which puts huge limits on freedom of movement and is something our customers tell us they don’t want.
In principle, the Australian Government’s position is this:
While the Australian Government strongly supports immunisation and will run a strong campaign to encourage vaccination, it is not mandatory and individuals may choose not to vaccinate. There may, however, be circumstances where the Australian Government and other governments may introduce border entry or re-entry requirements that are conditional on proof of vaccination.
It’s likely that other countries – and possibly airlines – will require vaccination against COVID-19 before allowing entry. This already happens with Yellow Fever and Polio in some parts of the world.
Some people cannot be vaccinated due to pre-existing medical conditions, so there would need to be an alternative for those people (which could be heightened testing, mask-wearing and/or quarantine).
There is no suggestion that a vaccine would be required for domestic travel and probably not for countries with which Australia might form a ‘travel bubble’ (e.g. New Zealand).
The Qantas Group acknowledges some people have concerns regarding vaccines. However, we believe we have a duty of care to everyone onboard our aircraft to create a safe environment. All our policies are ultimately shaped by this.
We don’t intend to formalise the detail of our vaccine requirement (including how long it might apply for) until a safe and effective one is well-established; and only then once international travel from Australia is ready to restart in earnest, which we are estimating will be between the middle-to-end of 2021.
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So no real, final clarification yet on mandatory vaccinations or not for passengers or crew, so watch this space.
Would you feel more comfortable knowing you were flying on an airline where all the crew had been vaccinated or not?
Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
An edited report from Simple Flying by John Alwyn-Jones
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