Dozens of unvaccinated Windsor, Ont. hospital staff suspended without pay
Windsor, Ont., hospitals have suspended dozens of employees without pay for not getting their COVID-19 vaccines, per employee policy.
Windsor Regional Hospital reports that 3,398 or 96 per cent of its employees are fully vaccinated or have complied with the policy of getting at least one dose by Wednesday, Sept. 22.
As of Wednesday, 140 of the employees have not complied with the policy. Of these employees 84 are considered clinical staff and 56 are considered non-clinical staff.
Also, 534 or 99 per cent of WRH professional staff are fully vaccinated or have complied with the policy, while seven have not. However, only two of the seven are full-time employees.
The policy was unanimously passed by WRH’s Medical Advisory Committee on Sept. 2 and was approved by WRH’s Board of Directors on Sept. 3.
“The policy is part of a progressive plan to ensure that all employees, Professional Staff, Affiliates, volunteers, and students (“Staff”) are vaccinated against COVID-19, unless they have a valid exemption,” said the hospital in a memo to staff on Wednesday.
WRH says staff who did not receive the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by Sept. 22, 2021, will be placed on a two-week unpaid leave.
If those staff members have not received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by Oct. 7, 2021, their employment will be terminated; or their privileges will be suspended on an immediate mid-term basis (with a recommendation going forward that their privileges be revoked/terminated) and the related by-law process will be followed.
As a result, hospital officials say the final number of staff still unvaccinated will not be known until after Oct. 7.
“I am very proud of our Windsor Regional Hospital team leading by example for our community. All our WRH Board members unanimously supported the implementation of the WRH Vaccine Policy and also lead by example themselves on the importance of getting vaccinated,” stated Anthony Paniccia, WRH Board Chair.
WRH CEO David Musyj says the hospital has put the safety and well-being of patients, our community and team members first by requiring employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
“The individuals who have not complied with the policy and decided not to be vaccinated will not impact the provision of clinical or non-clinical care to our community,” said Musyj.
Hotel Dieu Grace Healthcare
Effective Sept. 22 at 12:01 a.m. all staff and physicians at HDGH in Windsor must have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to attend the Hospital pursuant to our policy unless provided an approved exemption.
HDGH has a 96 per cent vaccination rate. As of Wednesday morning, this will affect 32 employees who are now suspended without pay.
HDGH officials say if these employees do not have the first vaccination on or before Oct. 6, they will face termination with cause.
Erie Shores Healthcare in Leamington
ESHC is in Phase 1 of their staff vaccination policy, which includes twice-weekly testing by staff and physicians who aren’t fully vaccinated. Phase 2 of their policy, which requires all staff and physicians to have at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine to attend the hospital, goes into effect on Oct. 4.
At this time, ESHC says 95 per cent of staff have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and they are hopeful more will receive their first shot prior to the deadline.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
As GC Strategies partner is admonished by MPs, RCMP confirms search warrant executed
The RCMP confirmed Wednesday it had executed a search warrant at an address registered to GC Strategies. This development comes as MPs are enacting an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power, summoning one of its contractors to appear before the House of Commons to be admonished publicly for failing to answer questions related to the ArriveCan app.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.