Majority of nurses on board with vaccine mandate, says union president

Nurses union president Janet Hazelton says she expects high uptake among nurses

CITYnews\ Mark Hodgins

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There’s less than two weeks to go until Nova Scotia’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health and education workers comes into effect. 

Currently, any workers who are not vaccinated by Nov. 30 will be put on unpaid leave. The province says people will be given an extension as long as they get their first dose before that date.

Nurses union president Janet Hazelton says she expects high uptake among nurses.

“I believe there’s not been a lot that have indicated they’re upset it’s mandatory, the majority of nurses feel it is and should be and they’re happy their coworkers are vaccinated,” she said.

Hazelton says there will be some nurses who have medical reasons for not getting the vaccine and those cases will be looked at by the union and the province.

In an update yesterday the province says it has now heard from the majority of employees, and the premier says he’s pleased with the vaccination rates.

The NSHA reported 94 per cent fully vaccinated with 88 per cent reporting, while the IWK Health Centre says 99 per cent are fully vaccinated with 99 per cent reporting.