WASHINGTON - Federal workers will not be punished for failing to comply with President Joe Biden's vaccine mandate until next year, the White House announced Monday.
The deadline for federal workers to receive the vaccine or face suspension or firing was Nov. 22. The White House said 96.5% of the 3.5 million employee workforce, the country's largest, has already complied.
A spokesman for the Office of Management and Budget said on Monday that the deadline was not a cliff and that our goal is to protect workers and not penalize anyone. That's why we encourage agencies to continue the education and counseling period in December for the small number of employees not already in compliance, and delay most suspensions and removals until the new year, the spokesperson said. We're seeing a surge in compliance and believe this is the best way to vaccinate more employees. Federal employees can request a religious exemption from the vaccine mandate.
Biden had initially given federal workers the choice of regular testing instead of getting vaccineized, but he said in September that testing opt-out would no longer be an option. Federal contractors must meet a separate vaccine requirement.
The president has imposed a series of vaccination requirements in an effort to pressure the unvaccinated to get the shots, including a requirement that all companies with at least 100 workers get vaccinated or regularly tested. That requirement has been temporarily blocked in the courts.
The enforcement news came as Biden spoke from the White House Monday morning about the new omicron variant and the potential threat it poses to the U.S. He said the variant was a cause for concern, not a cause for panic and urged unvaccinated Americans to get their first shots, and those who are vaccinated to get booster shots.