As COVID policies are being rescinded, next on the chopping block is the vaccine mandate for Federal employees. Rep. Matt Gaetz introduced the COVID-19 Federal Employee Reinstatement Act, which will allow all Federal workers let go for not getting the COVID vaccine back into the workforce.
Rep. Gaetz's measure will offer full compensation/ and reinstatement.
According to Government Executive, approximately 98% of Federal employees complied with the vaccine mandate. By that number, approximately 80,000 workers did not comply, based on an estimate of 4 million Federal employees by performance.gov.
According to the bill's text, these workers can choose to receive compensation either in 12-month installments or a single lump sum.
Additionally, mention is made that they will be "entitled to priority consideration for each appointment for a position in the Federal Government."
"Forcing public servants to choose between destroying their livelihood or complying with immoral demands from the federal government is sickening," Rep. Gaetz stated in his press release.
"The Biden administration should have never forced federal employees to resign due to the vaccine mandate. Reinstating and compensating these individuals is the first step toward reconciliation. Vaccine mandates have no place in a free country," Gaetz adds.
This bill resembles the Vaccine Reenlistment Act introduced by Rep. Brian Mast earlier this January.
Rep. Mast made similar comments describing how "there are thousands of people who have been harmed by Joe Biden’s big government edict, but this bill is about more than just righting that wrong, it’s about military readiness. We need to get these men and women back in uniform and back doing the job they were trained to do: protecting our nation."
