Today, the City of Toronto reported that 23,730 members of the Toronto Public Service are fully vaccinated, which is 88 per cent of City staff who disclosed their vaccination status. Five per cent of City staff who disclosed their vaccination status are partially vaccinated. City staff were required to disclose their vaccination status by September 17, under the City of Toronto’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy for employees.
Currently, the City’s primary focus for unvaccinated staff remains on education. It will continue to encourage compliance with the mandatory vaccination policy and monitor vaccination rates of City staff, as well as the evolving public health information, to determine if additional measures are required. Non-compliance will be addressed on a case-by-case basis.
Starting this week, staff who have not been fully vaccinated or who did not disclose their vaccination status are required to complete mandatory education, through an online training module developed by Toronto Public Health. Staff are expected to complete this training prior to the September 30 deadline to receive a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The City released its mandatory vaccination policy on August 26 to help protect the health and safety of City employees, residents and the community. Under the policy, all members of the Toronto Public Service were required to disclose their vaccination status and provide proof of vaccination by September 17. As the largest employer in Toronto, the City is taking a leadership role in making COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for its workforce.
By September 30, unvaccinated staff are required to have received and reported their first vaccine dose for a two-dose vaccine or have received a single-dose vaccine. By October 30, all City staff are required to have received their first and second doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. The City will comply with its human rights obligations, and employees who are not able to obtain a COVID-19 vaccine under a protected ground set out in the Ontario Human Rights Code, will be entitled to accommodation.
Vaccination statistics of those that completed a vaccination disclosure form (as of end of day September 17)
The total number of active City of Toronto employees is 30,940. Active employees do not include employees who are on a long term leave of absence (e.g. long term disability, parental leave, earned deferred leave, etc.).
Note, the data reported is preliminary and will continue to be reviewed. Due to the current means for extracting data, it is possible that data from a small number of employees who are considered non-active is included in the above totals.
Since COVID-19 vaccines became available in Toronto, City staff have been encouraged to get vaccinated as soon they were eligible and have been permitted to attend vaccination appointments during work hours, where operationally feasible.
The City will continue to closely monitor evolving public health information and the COVID-19 situation to protect the health and safety of employees. As an employer, the City is meeting its obligations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act to take every precaution reasonable to protect employees from workplace hazards, including COVID-19.
The City’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy can be viewed on the COVID-19: Mandatory Vaccination Policy web page.
Quotes:
“I am encouraged that such a high number of City employees have already made the right decision for themselves, our community and our workplaces by getting vaccinated. This policy is the right thing to do to protect the health and safety of all City of Toronto employees. We know that vaccines are the most effective way to protect against the fourth wave and Delta variant so we can end this pandemic and reopen our city.”
– Mayor John Tory
“Nothing is more important than the health and safety of our employees and the residents that use our services, which is why we implemented the mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy. I’m proud to see that so many members of the Toronto Public Service recognize the importance of vaccines as well. Over the coming weeks, I look forward to seeing the number of fully vaccinated staff increase as we continue to make sure they understand the benefits of vaccination.”
– Chris Murray, City Manager
Toronto is home to more than 2.9 million people whose diversity and experiences make this great city Canada’s leading economic engine and one of the world’s most diverse and livable cities. As the fourth largest city in North America, Toronto is a global leader in technology, finance, film, music, culture and innovation, and consistently places at the top of international rankings due to investments championed by its government, residents and businesses. For more information visit the City’s website or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.