United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby stated on Tuesday that roughly 3,000 of his company’s employees had tested positive for COVID-19, but that none of the vaccinated employees had died or been hospitalised with the disease recently.
Chicago-based United was the first airline in the United States to require employees to get immunizations in order to facilitate travel and flying operations. Since late December, when the rise of Omicron cases and cold weather began to disrupt plans, airlines have cancelled thousands of flights.
“Since our immunisation policy went into force, the hospitalisation rate among our staff has been 100x lower than the general population in the United States,” Kirby wrote in a memo on Tuesday.
According to the airline, around one employee per week died from the coronavirus before stronger rules were implemented.
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“Tragically, more than one United employee died from COVID on average *per week* before United’s vaccine regulations were put in place,” Kirby stated. “However, our vaccinated personnel have already gone eight weeks without a COVID-related death.”
According to United’s previous experience and nationwide COVID data, “about 8-10 United employees are alive today as a result of our vaccine obligation,” according to Kirby.
“We’re decreasing our near-term schedules to ensure we have the people and resources to take care of clients,” he explained.
In the face of Republican criticism, Kirby defended the airline’s vaccine mandate decision last month.
At a Senate hearing, Kirby stated, “We did this for safety.” “We don’t cut corners when it comes to safety.”
Last month, around 200 of United’s 67,000 employees were fired for failing to comply with the company’s mandate, according to Kirby. Out of around 13,000 pilots, he said, about 6 were dismissed and 80 were placed on unpaid leave.
On Friday, rival American Airlines announced that over 96 percent of its employees had provided confirmation of COVID-19 inoculation or a request for accommodation.
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