CELEBRATION, Fla. — In light of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine becoming FDA approved, union workers at Walt Disney World in Florida will now be required to be fully vaccinated by October.
The Walt Disney Company and a coalition of unions have agreed that workers at Disney World will have to get COVID-19 vaccinations to keep their jobs.
The deal reached Monday requires the union workers to show proof of vaccination by Oct. 22 unless they get a medical or religious exemption.
The news comes about a month after the Walt Disney Company required all salaried and non-union hourly employees in the U.S. to be fully vaccinated by the end of September.
This new requirement for union employees is only for those working for the Service Trades Council Union, according to CNBC. That means no deal has been made yet on the west coast for Disneyland union workers.
CNBC says the Service Trades Council Union represents about 43,000 Disney cast members at the Florida theme park resort.
“We appreciate the communication and collaboration with the union representatives as we put the safety of our cast members at the forefront of our health and safety protocols - getting the vaccine is the best way to protect each other,” Disney said in a statement provided to WKMG.
Union workers will have until Oct. 22 to get vaccinated. According to WKMG, exceptions will be made if a cast member can't get the vaccine for medical reasons. Employees who have religious beliefs preventing them from getting the vaccine will be exempt on a case-by-case method.
The company plans on-site vaccine events for employees over the next several weeks.
Union says employees who don't comply will be “separated from the company" but can get hired again in the future. The deal was announced shortly after Pfizer's vaccine earned full FDA approval.
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