As the Governor and other politicians move forward with mandated vaccinations for all state and public employees as a condition of continued employment, Teamsters Local 174 must make our position clear regarding these mandates. Although we believe it is in everyone’s best interest to receive a vaccination and it is for the advancement of overall safety, we respect the right of those who, for whatever personal reason, choose not to receive the vaccination and will fight to protect that choice with the following positions:

1. Requiring vaccinations is a mandatory subject of bargaining. We believe mandatory vaccinations cannot legally be implemented on our members without first negotiating the effects and in some cases also the decision of the mandate with us, the legal representative of Teamsters Local 174 members.
2. We do not believe that any employee should be terminated for refusing to get the vaccine.
3. These vaccine mandates are especially infuriating when they are being used to abuse our members who have been going to work throughout the pandemic as “Essential Workers” while there was no vaccine, and yet these workers exposed themselves and their families every single day to COVID-19 so that our communities could continue to function. Politicians and Employers treated our members as necessary but also expendable and didn’t care about them throughout the pandemic – but now want you to believe they do care. We do not accept that.
4. There are other means of keeping those who are vaccinated and those who choose not to be vaccinated safe in the workplace. After all we have been doing that since the pandemic began.

Our job is to protect all our members no matter what. We protect their health and safety on the job, but we also protect their rights under Federal Law and under their Collective Bargaining Agreements. Hopefully the Governor and the other politicians as well as all Employers will recognize we are all in this together and there is a solution that works for the betterment of all. Terminating your employees is not the answer.