Jobs are on the line for Citigroup employees who choose not to comply with a companywide COVID-19 vaccine requirement by January 14.
Staff members who have not been vaccinated against the virus will be placed on unpaid leave, then terminated by the end of the month unless an exemption is approved, Reuters reports.
The measure was originally announced in October, making Citigroup the first major financial company to enforce a strict vaccination policy.
Other major Wall Street banks, including Goldman Sachs & Co, Morgan Stanley, and JPMorgan Chase & Co, advised unvaccinated employees to work from home, but none has yet gone as far as termination.
The bank said exemptions based on religious or medical grounds would be considered on an individual basis, according to The New York Post.
A source who is familiar with the matter said more than 90 percent of Citigroup employees have adhered to the mandate so far.
The financial institution says it’s complying with the vaccine mandate issued by the Biden administration, requiring all workers who support government contracts to be fully vaccinated.
“You are welcome to apply for other roles at Citi in the future as long as you are compliant with Citi’s vaccination policy,” the bank said in a memo. “If you are not vaccinated, we urge you to get vaccinated as soon as possible.”
As CBN News reported in September, President Biden announced new executive orders mandating COVID shots for many private employees as well as all federal employees and contractors. In a sweeping move of executive power, Biden announced his broad vaccine mandate affecting as many as 100 million Americans.
At Biden’s direction, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) required all private businesses with 100 or more employees to force every employee to get a COVID vaccine or present a negative COVID test result weekly under the threat of heavy fines.
Vaccination requirements have been a disputed issue, leading to numerous lawsuits with some arguing it’s an overreach by the federal government.
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