No discipline for police who miss deadline, union says
TPS says ‘majority’ of employees have disclosed their vaccination status
Two weeks after Toronto police announced COVID-19 vaccines will be mandatory for all employees, the union representing officers says members who don’t disclose their inoculation status by next week’s deadline will not face discipline.
In an update sent to members Thursday, the Toronto Police Association said it has been in daily discussion with the Toronto Police Service since it announced a mandatory vaccination policy last month — a requirement the union has said it is opposing due to missing “critical details.”
Toronto police have not released details about the policy, which is still under development — including what will happen if officers refuse to get vaccinated or what accommodations can be made. But the force said in an Aug. 24 announcement that the first step was requiring employees to disclose and provide proof of their vaccination status by Sept. 13.
According to the TPA, the union negotiated a commitment from TPS that officers will not be disciplined and will not be transferred to a different posting if they don’t disclose their status by the deadline.
Toronto police spokesperson Allison Sparkes confirmed that employees will not be disciplined if they don’t meet Monday’s deadline — but added “the majority” of employees have already disclosed their status.
“The first step for the Service in instituting the mandatory vaccination requirement will be to understand the vaccination status of all members,” Sparkes said Friday.
Asked what steps the service is taking to enforce the mandatory vaccination policy if officers won’t be disciplined for not providing their status, Sparkes said the police force is “taking a thoughtful approach to what the policy will include and how it will be implemented in our workplaces.”
Toronto police is consulting with the TPA and other police organizations, Sparkes said.
The question of mandatory vaccination for police has proved divisive among forces and their associations.
In addition to the TPA, the Ontario Provincial Police Association has told its members that, although it believes vaccination provides the greatest protection for members, “the board of directors supports a member’s right to choose to receive this vaccine.”
The Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP), which represents the province’s police leaders, has said the “overriding priority” must be the health and safety of all personnel.
“To that end, we continue to strongly encourage all personnel to be vaccinated unless they have a medical reason to not be fully vaccinated,” the OACP said in a statement last month.
The Ontario Provincial Police Association has told its members that ... “the board of directors supports a member’s right to choose to receive this vaccine”