Alaska Airlines has told staff they need to get theCOVID-19 vaccine , reversing its earlier stance.- The company explained it's a government contractor, so the federal
vaccine mandate applies to it. - The deadline for Alaska Air's roughly 22,000 workers to be vaccinated may be as early as December 8.
Alaska Airlines has announced a COVID-19 vaccination requirement for all of its employees.
The carrier told staff Thursday that they'll need to get vaccinated against COVID-19, as The Seattle Times previously reported. Alaska Air is adopting the mandate in accordance with President Biden's executive order requiring employees of federal contractors to get vaccinated.
"Since our company does significant work for the federal government, we have determined that Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air and McGee employees - all part of Alaska Air Group - do fall under this federal vaccine mandate, along with other major U.S. airlines," the company said in the announcement, which Insider viewed. " This means all of our employees, including certain contractors and vendors, will be required to be fully vaccinated, or be approved for a reasonable accommodation such as medical conditions or religious beliefs that prevent them from being vaccinated."
Alaska Air said the deadline for all of its roughly 22,000 employees to be vaccinated could be as early as December 8.
The company is also extending its deadline for employees to get $200 for uploading proof of vaccination. Workers will now have until December 1 to take advantage of the incentive, compared to the previous deadline of October 15.
The announcement of the airline's