7,800 More IL Public Workers Now Under Vaccine Mandates: Governor

ILLINOIS — Illinois has reached an agreement with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for about 7,800 public sector employees, the governor's office announced Monday.

According to a news release, the union signed on to vaccine mandates for employees in round-the-clock congregate facilities managed by both the Illinois Department of Human Services and the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs. Under the agreement, those employees will be required to get their first shot by Oct. 26 and a second shot by Nov. 30.

The new agreement brings the total number of unionized state workers under a vaccine mandate to nearly 10,000.

“I’m proud to announce our sixth and largest union agreement that will protect nearly 10,000 state workers and the people under their care,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said. “We’ve overcome tremendous challenges during the pandemic, and I want to thank our partners in the labor movement for being a part of the solution. Each person that gets vaccinated is protecting themselves, the people around them and our state as a whole. We will continue to work through the established legal process to ensure all state employees who work with the vulnerable and incarcerated are vaccinated.”

About 10,300 union employees with the Departments of Corrections and Juvenile Justice have yet to reach an agreement about vaccines and will undergo arbitration to break an impasse, according to the state.

The governor's office said it will impose a vaccine mandate unilaterally on about 1,900 non-security Corrections and Juvenile Justice employees, with or without an agreement with the union.

Officials said state employees who remain unvaccinated pose a significant risk to residents of congregate facilities, including nursing homes, veterans facilities and prisons. The governor's office warned of disciplinary measures for employees who don't get a shot or an exemption by the deadline.

The state previously reached vaccine mandate agreements with unions representing 260 supervisory employees at the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice; 1,100 nurses in veterans, mental health and correctional facilities; 160 state DHS and VA employees represented by the Illinois Federation of Public Employees, 470 trade workers at veterans homes and correctional facilities; and 100 state DHS and VA maintenance equipment operators represented by the Teamsters union.

State employees will receive an additional personal day to encourage vaccinations, officials said. They may be compensated at regular pay if they are unable to receive a vaccination during their regular shift, and will receive paid "COVID time" if they contract a breakthrough case of the coronavirus after getting vaccinated.

"Vaccination is the key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic and returning to normal life," officials said.