Sudbury's hospital terminated 53 staffers for not getting COVID-19 vaccine
Health Sciences North said Wednesday that a total of 53 full- and part-time staff have been terminated for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
The staff members were fired Nov. 29-30. They include 14 full-time employees, 32 part-time employees and seven casual workers, representing 1.4 per cent of all HSN employees.
In a news release, HSN said it revised its vaccination policy Nov. 1 to make it mandatory for all current employees, professional staff, learners and volunteers be vaccinated.
"At that time, HSN had 266 or seven per cent of its employees who had yet to provide evidence of first dose of COVID-19 vaccination," the release said.
"On Nov. 15, HSN had 76 or two per cent of its employees who were not compliant with the mandatory vaccination policy and who were put on unpaid leave."
Those terminated include 17 nurses, nine paramedical workers, 15 service staff, nine clerical staff and three non-union workers.
"HSN respects the decision of these unvaccinated employees who, for reasons that are personal to them, chose to leave the organization," the release said.
"The number of terminations was within the range HSN expected based on the experience of other Ontario hospitals that implemented mandatory COVID-19 vaccination."
For context, the hospital said in the last 12 months, HSN hired 788 new employees and 1,300 of its employees are eligible to retire in the next five years.
"One hundred per cent of credentialed professional staff, learners and active on-site volunteers at HSN are now vaccinated," HSN said.
And 99.7 per cent of active employees are vaccinated, with one employee with an approved medical exemption and 12 other exemptions pending approval.
"The staff with approved or pending exemptions are required to submit rapid antigen test results twice per week," the release said.
Employees who have only their first dose are required to provide evidence of their second dose of COVID-19 vaccination by January. The hospital said that follows the most recent guidance from the Ministry of Health, which now recommends an eight-week interval between first and second doses of vaccine.
Correction
The nine paramedical workers affected by the termination were not city paramedics.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.
Record-breaking N.B. lottery winner kept winning ticket on dresser for nearly a year
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
A dog and a bird formed an unlikely friendship. Their separation has infuriated followers
Peggy is a stout and muscular Staffordshire bull terrier, and Molly is a magpie, an Australian bird best known for swooping on humans during breeding season, not for befriending dogs. But in an emotional video posted online, Peggy’s owners announced that the animals had been separated.
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 mm among weather alerts in effect for 7 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres, air quality advisories and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
Gangs netting up to US$3 trillion a year as Southeast Asia human trafficking becomes a global crisis, Interpol says
Human trafficking-fuelled fraud is exploding in Southeast Asia with organized crime rings raking in close to US$3 trillion in illicit revenue annually, the head of Interpol has said in comments that reveal the huge profits being earned by cartels.