On November 20, Walt Disney World confirmed to FOX Business that it has officially paused its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for its employees.
“We believe that our approach to mandatory vaccines has been the right one as we’ve continued to focus on the safety and well-being of our cast members and guests, and at this point, more than 90% of active Florida-based cast members have already verified that they are fully vaccinated,” a Disney spokesperson said. “We will address legal developments as appropriate.”
According to Reuters, in July, six weeks before President Biden announced the vaccine mandate, Disney said that it would make vaccinations mandatory for all its on-site salaried and non-union hourly employees across the nation.
An internal memo from Disney acquired by FOX 35 Orlando said that the pause will sustain as the company “assesses the new state laws protecting workers from vaccine mandates.”
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The news comes as the latest development due to Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ special session legislation, which places new restrictions on COVID-19 vaccine mandates by employers.
“I told Floridians that we would protect their jobs, and today we made that the law,” DeSantis said in a press release this week. “Nobody should lose their job due to heavy-handed COVID mandates, and we had a responsibility to protect the livelihoods of the people of Florida. I’m thankful to the Florida Legislature for joining me in standing up for freedom.”
Effective immediately, private employer COVID-19 vaccine mandates are banned, and any employer who violates the health protections of employees may be subject to be fined up to $50,000 per violation.
Government entities are within the right not to require COVID-19 vaccinations of anyone, and educational institutions will also not need students to have face mask policies, quarantine any healthy student, or mandate they are vaccinated against COVID-19.
Parents and students are entitled to file a lawsuit for violating school districts and recover costs and attorney’s fees.
