'Big Relief': Boston Firefighters Union Celebrates Ruling Blocking Vaccine Mandate
BOSTON (CBS) -- Police and firefighters unions in Boston on Wednesday celebrated an appeals court ruling that allows them to avoid being fired for not getting a COVID vaccine - at least for now.
Boston firefighter Doug Felton said he has lived in uncertainty for months, not knowing if he would lose his job because he is unvaccinated.
"My wife and I have been very nervous, have I had to look for other jobs? Where else can I work?" he told WBZ-TV. "Big relief to be able to see that I get to keep working at my job for now."
Some Boston firefighters and officers have been protesting Mayor Michelle Wu's vaccine mandate requiring approximately 19,000 city workers to get the COVID shot. They say it ignores their collective bargaining agreements.
"We fairly and fully negotiated with the city of Boston an agreement. And then the city made the unilateral decision to renege on the deal," said Edward Kelly, president of the International Association of Firefighters.
On Tuesday a Massachusetts appeals court judge granted an injunction blocking Wu's requirement for three labor unions while their legal challenge is ongoing.
"This case was not about COVID or a vaccine," Kelly said. "It was about hard-earned labor rights."
About 90% of Boston's firefighters are vaccinated. The ruling will keep the city's prior policy in place for now, allowing union members to test for COVID weekly instead of getting the shot.
"I've been testing every week this whole time and it actually caught the fact that I had it, so it's a very effective policy," Felton said.
A spokesperson for Wu said the administration is disappointed in the decision and carefully reviewing it. Union leaders said they are ready to meet with the mayor and find a solution.
"To protect communities and workplaces against COVID-19, courts across the country have repeatedly recognized the rights of state and local governments to require public employees to be vaccinated," Wu's statement said in part. "Our workers and residents who rely on city services deserve to be protected."
