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YOUNGSTOWN -- As city health district officials still work to determine how many city employees are vaccinated against COVID-19 in preparation for an inoculation mandate, unions representing police officers and firefighters voiced strong objections to such a requirement.
Mayor Jamael Tito Brown has talked for a couple of months about the likely requirement that city employees get COVID-19 vaccinations or be subject to testing weekly or every two weeks.
The mandate would be put in place no later than sometime during the week of Nov. 15, Brown said.
"I haven't put a date on it, but that would be the latest," he said, acknowledging he's been in favor of such a mandate for quite a while.
About 50 percent of the city's approximately 700 employees have shown proof of vaccination, Brown said.
Others say they are vaccinated but haven't shown proof, he said.
City workers were told Oct. 8 to share that information voluntarily no later than Oct. 15. The city health district was tasked with determining how many were vaccinated and is still working through the process.
Health Commissioner Erin Bishop has said her department experienced delays because of a lack of proof-of-vaccination cards from some workers. She added that the district recently "got so busy with boosters."
Though the mandate would go into effect no later than the week of Nov. 15, city workers will be given an extension past that time to get vaccinated and provide proof of inoculation, Brown said.
The unvaccinated would be tested, but wouldn't initially have to pay for those tests, Brown said.
"The city will pay for the testing at first, but not for an indefinite period of time," he said.
The vaccination requirement is "definitely an issue that remains ahead of us," Law Director Jeff Limbian said. "We're just making sure that people's rights are protected and we minimize the amount of litigation we anticipate. We expect the unions will push back on this. We want to navigate those waters with as little difficulty as possible."
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The pushback already has begun. Brown said he wasn't surprised.
The police patrol and ranking officers unions as well as the union representing firefighters issued separate statements Friday criticizing Brown for moving ahead with the vaccination requirement.
James Rowley, the patrol union's president, said he was "in dismay" at the mandate.
"The science has suggested that getting vaccinated does not prevent infection or spread of the coronavirus, it just lessens the likelihood of serious illness or hospitalizations," he said. "So it is puzzling as to why a mandate would even be necessary. "
The union doesn't object to the vaccination being a condition of employment for new hires, Rowley said, "but not force it on those already here who have not gotten it for their own reasons."
Rowley said it's been difficult to get people to sign up for the police entry-level test, and "we can't afford to lose anyone else here for any reason, let alone a vaccine mandate."
He added the union "believes it is the right of the person to choose to get the vaccine based on their personal needs, not be forced for some political reason. It also is a bit odd that for the past 20 months of this pandemic that no one has been forced to test weekly and all of a sudden you will be required" and the decision "seems punitive."
Charlie Smith, president of the firefighters union, said it is "our belief that being vaccinated is a person's choice and not a choice that should be made by a city leader or government official. We would encourage Mayor Tito Brown to not follow through with a vaccine mandate as" unions "on the front line have already publicly and respectfully disagreed."
Smith said if a vaccination mandate or policy is approved, the union "will continue to explore our options and work with our members to ensure a decision is made that is best for them and for the city of Youngstown."
Seann Carfolo, president of the police ranking officers union, said Brown's decision "was made without consultation" of the union, which is "particularly disappointing" as police have been "on the front lines of this pandemic and (Brown has) chosen to disregard our contractual rights to give the employees we represent a voice in the decision-making process affecting their terms and condition of employment."
Carfolo added: "There is no reason that this policy could not have been discussed, refined and improved through negotiations with the affected unions. We must respectfully demand that (Brown) delay the implementation of this policy until such a time that the city has met its obligations to negotiate the effects of this mandate."
Brown first discussed the possibility Aug. 23 of mandating all city employees be vaccinated or get regularly tested. It was the same day he announced a face mask mandate, effective a day later, for all those inside city buildings, except the Covelli Centre.
It came up in a discussion by city council about giving $1,000 bonuses to all city employees who have either been vaccinated against COVID-19 or would get inoculated. That proposal was defeated Oct. 20 by a 4-3 vote, but Brown had continued to favor the vaccination mandate for city workers.
dskolnick@vindy.com