Emirates will ask all unvaccinated crew to pay for their own regular COVID-19 tests starting next week. The airline has made the vaccine free to its entire workforce since January and hopes to have everyone on the frontline vaccinated. However, those who refuse to get the vaccine (without a valid reason) will have to pay for testing to keep everyone safe.
Tightening the rules
Emirates started the vaccination drive for its frontline staff in January, placing them on priority for the vaccines due to their role. According to reports from Reuters, 60% of cabin crews have received their doses or are scheduled to get them. While 60% is a good turnout for two months, the airline wants to ramp up the rollout.
Starting from March 15th, unvaccinated employees will need to pay for their own weekly COVID-19 tests or take the free vaccine. Exemptions are made for those ineligible for the vaccines, those recovered from COVID-19, and those currently infected. Other than that, Emirates wants everyone to get their shot immediately.
While testing in Dubai is not extremely expensive (costing roughly $40), Emirates wants its employees to take the vaccine instead. This is for both safety and operational reasons, with an internal staff email saying,
“Certain countries may in the future differentiate entry criteria between those who have taken the vaccine and those who did not. Keeping this in mind, having a vaccinated workforce has become essential not just from a health and safety angle but from an operational one too.”
Not yet
While Emirates is clearly pushing its staff to get the vaccine, it seems the shot is not mandatory just yet. Airlines globally have found themselves divided over the issue of mandatory vaccinations, with some taking a hardline for vaccines, while others cite moral concerns with ordering employees to take the shot.
Emirates also seems to be taking the non-mandatory approach, albeit pushing its staff towards taking the vaccine. Dubai is one of the few countries that has made the vaccine available to all adults, which means there is adequate supply available. Critically, frontline staff are at a high risk of infection, making their protection key for airlines.
However, if many frontline employees remain unvaccinated in a few months, airlines might switch to mandating the vaccine. Considering vaccines are not required for travel to countries right now, airlines still have some time to convince employees.
However, once vaccines become a pre-requisite to entering countries, expect more airlines to make the shots mandatory.
Vaccines ramping up
Vaccines are the key to opening up the travel industry in the coming months. However, the rollout has been uneven, with some countries like the UAE and Israel racing ahead. This is reflected in their national airlines’ vaccination plans too, with many countries not prioritizing airline staff just yet.
Until vaccines become freely available globally, it’s unlikely that travel restrictions with return to 2019 levels soon. For now, airlines are hoping to vaccinate their own employees as soon as possible to keep them safe and return to some level of normalcy.
What do you think about mandatory vaccines for airline employees? Let us know in the comments!