Boeing requiring its US workers to get the COVID-19 vaccine

EVERETT, Wash. — Boeing employees based in the United States must be vaccinated against COVID-19 by Dec. 8 or risk being fired. 

Employees can request exemptions “due to a disability or sincerely held religious belief.”

The requirement is to “ensure compliance with President Biden’s executive order for federal contractors,” the company said in a statement.

The policy will apply to roughly 140,000 employees companywide, with about 57,000 of those in Washington state. 

The Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA), one of many unions representing Boeing workers, said in a statement it is talking with employers to “ensure implementation gives proper consideration to members’ health concerns, health issues and abides by the provisions of our negotiated contracts.” 

“As the SPEEA Executive Board stated before, we encourage members to get vaccinated for the safety of themselves, their families and co-workers. We also remind members, the mandates stem from a federal directive and our employers’ need to provide a safe working environment for you and your co-workers,” SPEEA said in a statement.

Biden is requiring vaccination for employees of the executive branch and contractors who do business with the federal government — with no option to test out. The requirement was announced in September and covers millions of workers.