American & Southwest Airlines Change Vaccine Policies for Staff

The companies will no longer fire employees who get vaccine exemptions.

Courtesy of Southwest Airlines

The Biden administration released new guidelines requiring federal contractors to have employees fully vaccinated by December 8 of this year, including US airline employees. The requirement has met resistance, while some airlines have threatened to fire employees or place them on unpaid leave if they don't comply with the mandate.

Two airlines have announced that they will not be taking such measures. After Southwest initially announced it would place unvaccinated employees and employees who hadn't received a vaccine exemption on unpaid leave, the company walked back that position on Tuesday. American Airlines also reversed its previous decision.

Southwest employees will have until November 24 to submit proof they were fully vaccinated or request a vaccine exemption. But if the vaccine exemption request isn't processed before the December 8 deadline, employees won't be penalized with unpaid leave. Instead, they will continue working, though regular testing and wearing masks will likely be required.

"While we intend to grant all valid requests for accommodations, in the event a request is not granted, the company will provide adequate time for an employee to become fully vaccinated while continuing to work and adhering to safety protocols," Southwest spokesperson Brandy King said in a statement to NPR.

American Airlines has a similar approach to the federal guidelines. "American will not be placing any team members on unpaid leave as part of the federal vaccine mandate," said American Airlines spokesperson Matt Miller.

Meanwhile, United Airlines reports that it has already begun to fire nearly 200 employees who refused to get the vaccine or ask for an exemption.

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Opheli Garcia Lawler is a staff writer at Thrillist. Follow her on Twitter @opheligarcia and Instagram @opheligarcia.

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