New Zealand's Vaccination Mandate Keeps 100 Firefighters Out Of Work - Reports

Nearly 100 firefighters in New Zealand cannot respond to emergency callouts as they have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 in compliance with the government's order, Radio New Zealand reported on Thursday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd December, 2021) Nearly 100 firefighters in New Zealand cannot respond to emergency callouts as they have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 in compliance with the government's order, Radio New Zealand reported on Thursday.

The country's Fire and Emergency service (FENZ) ordered all firefighters to get the first shot by November 29 and the second by January 14, saying it was in compliance with the government's health order issued on October 22. Some of the firefighters have not met the deadline.

The New Zealand Professional Firefighters' Union (NZPFU) said that this could result in mass exodus of workforce, as cited in the report.

On Tuesday, the FENZ ordered double vaccination for trainers and trainees as well, asking them to show up with certificates.

Following the criticism by the NZPFU, which said that the vaccination mandate is not applicable to trainers and trainees and was not found necessary by the union's risk assessment, the FENZ retracted the directive on Wednesday evening, according to the report.

Earlier this week, the FENZ started recruiting and training volunteers to fill the void created by the unvaccinated staff.