Federal Workforce Organizations Urge White House to Extend Vaccine Mandate Deadline

This week, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) urged the Biden administration to extend the federal vaccine mandate deadline for federal employees to January 4, 2022 — the new deadline set for federal contractors.

AFGE’s request follows the Biden administration's decision to provide federal contractors an additional four weeks to comply with the vaccine mandate from the original deadline of December 8, 2021.

In a letter to the White House, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and Office of Personnel Management (OPM), AFGE alleges the differing deadlines for federal employees and contractors has resulted in "confusion" and "distress" for people, who, in many cases, work side by side.

“While we share the administration’s goal of beating the pandemic and appreciate the vital role of vaccination in this effort, setting different compliance deadlines for employees vis-à-vis contractors is both harmful to morale and substantively unjustified,” stated AFGE National President Everett Kelley, “Federal workers should be able to complete the holiday season without the threat of discipline looming over them.”

Similarly, Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association’s (FLEOA) National President Larry Cosme questions why federal employees are not afforded accommodations while contractors and private employees are.

“Mr. President, your mandates have in effect created at least three different classes of individuals, each with different vaccine requirements, but any of which will have contact with the other.  We not only find these differing mandating requirements puzzling, since many of these individuals will occupy the same spaces, but we also find it shocking that you are the most punitive towards federal law enforcement officers, who have worked on the front lines through the pandemic keeping our nation safe without hesitation,” stated Cosme.

As previously reported by FEDagent, President Biden mandated through executive order all federal employees to be fully vaccinated by November 22. Federal employees should have received their last dose no later than November 8. OPM has subsequently advised agencies to begin the disciplinary process for unvaccinated employees on November 9.

In response to inquiries regarding a possible extension, OMB spokesperson cited remarks made by White House COVID-19 Coordinator Jeff Zients on October 20, stating that the vaccine mandate will not disrupt government operations and stressing a counseling and education period before the commencement of termination procedures.

“The purpose of this requirement is to protect the federal workforce. The vast majority of the federal workforce wants to know that they’re safe in the workplace because their coworkers are vaccinated," added the OMB spokesperson.

While AFGE's position on the vaccine mandate remains unchanged, AFGE Council of Prison Locals C-33, the national division that represents BOP employees, recently filed a lawsuit challenging the Biden Administration in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.