Chevron mandates coronavirus vaccines for some

The oil and gas giant Chevron will require some of its employees to receive coronavirus vaccinations, becoming the first major U.S. oil producer to announce that it was requiring field workers to be protected against the virus at a time when other large corporations are making similar demands on office workers.

The mandate applies to employees who travel internationally and expatriates, as well as the offshore workforce in the Gulf of Mexico and some onshore support personnel, the company said Monday. Chevron is the second-largest oil and gas producer in the United States after Exxon Mobil.

“As part of our fitness-forduty safety standard, workers in certain jobs are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19,” a Chevron spokesperson said in an email. “We will continue to carefully monitor the medical data and follow the guidance of health authorities in order to protect our workforce.”

The news was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal.

Exxon Mobil does not have a formal mandate on vaccines, but the company is strongly encouraging workers to get vaccinated. A company spokesperson, Casey Norton, said in a statement that Exxon was monitoring public health guidance.

“Given the spread of the delta variant and its impact on unvaccinated individuals, all unvaccinated

individuals are expected to wear a face covering in all indoor locations when 6 feet of social distance cannot be maintained,” he said. That policy went into effect

Wednesday.

Like Exxon, Royal Dutch Shell encourages vaccination among employees, but it is not mandatory. Employees must comply with local laws requiring vaccination for entering public places or to enter countries. In some workplaces, Shell said, it may help ease vaccinations as a convenience.