Unvaccinated Employees Terminated At Riverside Hospital 60901

2 years ago
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Unvaccinated Employees Terminated At Riverside Hospital 60901
KANKAKEE — Following through on its vow that unvaccinated employees would not be allowed to work for Riverside Healthcare, the Kankakee-based medical system fired 24 full-time equivalent workers earlier this week.

Workers unvaccinated against the COVID-19 virus originally had until Oct. 31 to gain the necessary vaccinations. Legal battles and shifting state guidelines extended the measure into late December.

One of those legal battles saw its end on Dec. 27, when a temporary restraining order approved for some Riverside employees expired, clearing the way for the hospital’s action.

In mid-December, Riverside’s administration extended the vaccination deadline until Jan. 2 and anyone who was notified they were an employee with enough face-to-face contact with patients would be terminated if they did not move toward gaining the vaccine.

Workers were notified last week that if they did not take the necessary steps they would no longer be a Riverside employee as of Monday.

Phil Kambic, Riverside’s president and CEO, said Tuesday that 99 percent of the approximate 2,900-member staff are vaccinated. The remaining 1 percent have hospital-approved exemptions.

The 24 full-time equivalents referred to 49 workers, who worked either full- or part-time.

AMITA Health St. Mary’s Hospital had a similar vaccination deadline as Riverside, but backed away from that stance a couple weeks ago stating it was waiting on pending court rulings.

Kambic said this was the only decision his health system could make. He stressed every decision is made with the mindset of how it impacts patient safety and care.

“This isn’t ‘us vs. them,’” he said. “This is about our patients. We are healthcare professionals.”

Kambic noted while other organizations may have eased deadlines on mandates, Riverside was not in that frame of mind.

“We said this is the right thing to do for our patients, for our community. Our mission is to care for our community in the best way we know how,” he said.

The hospital administration noted they were initially facing the firing of 31 FTEs, but 11th hour vaccinations reduced the figure to 24.

Daniel Shur, the attorney representing the Riverside workers who were seeking exemptions from the mandate, said Tuesday the fight is far from over. Many employees sought relief from the mandate by filing for a religious exemption with the hospital administration.

“We will keep fighting to vindicate the rights of these health care heroes and every American to ensure no one has to choose between their job and their conscience,” he wrote in an email response to The Journal.

“This case will continue as we seek monetary damages from Riverside for illegally firing these nurses,” he concluded.

Neelie Panozzo, the Riverside nurse who has been at the front of the fight against vaccinations as a term of employment, described the action as “disappointing.” Read More Here https://www.daily-journal.com/news/local/unvaccinated-employees-terminated-at-riverside/article_8634f774-6db9-11ec-9d68-5fb2634c92ec.html
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