Esquimalt and Central Saanich are the latest municipalities requiring employees to be double-vaccinated against COVID-19, along with the Capital Regional District and the District of Saanich.
People who work for Esquimalt and Central Saanich have until Dec. 20 to show proof of vaccination.
Details about what will happen if a staff member refuses to provide proof of two doses — and if it applies to contractors and their employees who do business in civic operations — are still being worked out, according to officials.
Accommodations will be made for employees who can’t be fully vaccinated for medical reasons or under provisions in the province’s human rights code. Policies are expected to be complete later in November.
“This policy is our way of bolstering not only the health and safety of our staff, but of all visitors to township facilities,” said Esquimalt chief administrative officer Laurie Hurst.
“We’ve set a reasonable time frame so that those who are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated can get this done before Dec. 20.”
Esquimalt has a city payroll of 255, as well as auxiliary staff who work in recreation programs.
Staff vaccine mandates were announced Oct. 13 by the Capital Regional District and this week by Saanich. Workers there have until Dec. 13 to show proof that they are fully vaccinated.
Councillors in Saanich, Esquimalt and Central Saanich are exempt from the policy, but all have self-declared they have been fully vaccinated.
North Saanich, which has 63 municipal employees, will be implementing a mandatory vaccine policy, acting chief administrative officer Stephanie Munro said Friday.
Colwood said this week it has no plans to mandate staff vaccinations.
Sidney chief administrative officer Randy Humble said the town is exploring a possible mandate for staff, but is taking a “measured approach” at this point.
“While the public health authority has stated that some employers can impose vaccine mandates, there is not an automatic legal basis for doing so,” said Humble. “We believe that as an employer, we must be prepared to show why we are imposing any vaccine requirements, what the specific risks are for our staff that the vaccine will address, and what other safety measures have already been implemented.”
Humble said the town is seeking legal advice on a potential vaccine mandate and how it could be implemented, and is reaching out to the unions that represent town employees, including the Canadian Union of Public Employees and International Association of Firefighters.
Meanwhile, Nanaimo’s chief administrative officer, Jake Rudolph, said Friday the city is not proceeding with mandatory vaccines for its 1,000 staff “at this point.”
“It is monitored daily and the city adheres to [public health officer] guidance,” Rudolph said.
Geoff Garbutt, Courtenay’s chief administrative officer, said the city has no plans to require that staff be vaccinated. “As an employer, we have safety plans in place and work closely with our staff group and [unions] to address COVID-19 implications for city operations, mask compliance measures and public-facing services,” he said via email.
