Roughly 2,300 New York City firefighters called in sick Monday as Mayor Bill de Blasio’s (D) administration has placed thousands of workers on unpaid leave for refusing to get the coronavirus vaccine.
City workers, including first responders, had until Friday at 5:00 p.m. to provide proof of receiving at least one vaccination. Overall, the city has placed 9,000 workers on unpaid leave, while thousands more, 12,000, await to see if the city will grant their exemption request — something de Blasio warned will likely not happen.
On Monday, about 2,300 New York City firefighters called out sick — a significant portion of the 11,000 uniformed workers the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) employs.
While claiming to have love and respect for the first responders — the same first responders he has placed an coercive ultimatum on — de Blasio railed against the workers who called out.
New York City mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa speaks to the media in front of an FDNY firehouse on November 01, 2021 in New York City. Sliwa, who is the founder of the public protection group the Guardian Angels, has been a critic of vaccine mandates in New York City which has led to protests by members of the FDNY and the NYPD. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
“We have every reason to believe we have a lot of people out there claiming they are sick when they are not,” de Blasio said, calling it “unacceptable” and adding that the city will not tolerate it.
I think the smart thing for everyone to do is to recognize this decision was made for the health and welfare of all New Yorkers. It was affirmed in the courts many, many times. The democratic process worked here. There were appeals. There were opportunities for reconsideration, and the court spoke.
“It’s time to recognize this is the law. Get back to work protecting the people of this city,” he said, ignoring the concerns of first responders who have expressed concern over being forced to inject their bodies with something they are uncomfortable with, for a range of reasons.
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FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro affirmed that medical leave “spiked up” since the mandates were issued.
“The majority of them are unvaccinated. This is completely unacceptable,” he said, adding that firefighters who are working are picking up extra shifts to keep things operating.
“Thanks to those stepping up to fill spots, our department is functioning quite well,” he claimed.
According to NBC New York, “The firefighters union leader denied a coordinated sick-out, as UFA President Andrew Ansbro said that ‘no one on this board would condone anyone using medical leave fraudulently.'”
About one-fifth of FDNY have either taken unpaid leave or are seeking an exemption from the mandate.
Last month, prior to enforcing the coercive mandate, de Blasio claimed that he preferred to “respect people’s intelligence” before forcing them to take a shot — a position he clearly no longer holds as thousands of city workers remain on unpaid leave.