Mayor de Blasio is set to announce a coronavirus vaccine requirement for all municipal employees Wednesday, The Post has learned.
The city workers — including firefighters and cops — will have to get their first shot by Nov. 1, sources told The Post.
Currently, only Department of Education staff are required to be vaccinated, but de Blasio has long considered extending the mandate to all 300,000 city workers.
The current vaccination rate among the city’s workforce stands at about 83 percent. That number is significantly lower among cops and firefighters.
The NYPD has a vaccination rate of 69 percent among its 55,000 cops and civilian members.
Among members of the FDNY, the vaccination rate was even lower. Just 59 percent of smoke eaters have gotten the jab.
Pat Lynch, the president of the Police Benevolent Association, has said “the COVID-19 vaccine is a medical decision that members must make in consultation with their own healthcare providers.”
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea has said that he fully supports a mandate for police officers, citing the virus’ recent toll on cops.
“We lost three members last week, two of them to COVID, and I think it’s all unnecessary, to some degree. And I just, everyone I think, all across this country, really, should be embracing these vaccines,” Shea said Tuesday during an interview on NY1.
The virus was the leading cause of death among police officers across the country since the pandemic began — far exceeding the death toll by gunfire, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.
The news about the mandate did not sit well with one Brooklyn elected official.
“The mayor has no idea what he’s doing. We’re going to lose half of our cops and half of our fire department if this goes through, and then what?” the official said.
Right now many first responders are happy with the current rule that requires them to be vaccinated or subjected to regular COVID-19 testing.
Despite its ability to stave off a deadly disease that has killed more than 720,000 in the US alone, hundreds of protesters flocked to Times Square last weekend to voice their outrage about vaccine mandates.
“This means standing up for our freedom and indivisible rights, to come together as a group and let each other know we are not alone,” said Brett Copp, 56, a city worker from Staten Island who went to the “Rally for Freedom” protest Saturday at 41st Street and Broadway.
City Hall officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
