NEW YORK – New York City Fire Department Chief Daniel Nigro has lashed out at thousands of his department members for taking sick leave in an apparent protest over the municipal workers’ vaccination mandate.
“The false and irresponsible sick leave of some of our members is creating a danger for New Yorkers and their fellow firefighters. They need to go back to work or risk the consequences of their actions, “Nigro said over the weekend.
Meanwhile, Nigro has also tried to quell rumors that fire stations were forced to close in each of the five boroughs. As news spread of the increase in sick calls, news also spread that dozens of fire stations had to close.
“At 7:30 this morning, 26 FDNY stations, including five in my county, closed due to Mayor de Blasio’s decision to put unvaccinated firefighters out of work,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis of the Staten Island.
That same day, a senior fire official confirmed that FDNY members were being moved around the city to fill in the gaps left by growing sick calls, but fire stations were not closed.
The department pointed out that every time it sees a company go out of service, resources are shifted to bring the company back into service. Nigro emphasized over the weekend that “the department has not closed any fire stations.”
On Sunday night, the FDNY confirmed that 2,000 firefighters were on medical leave in apparent protest at the mandate.
Like most other city agencies in the city, the percentage of FDNY employees who have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine has increased dramatically since Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the term’s deadline.
Although the number of firefighters who are vaccinated has risen 15% in almost two weeks, that group still has one of the lowest percentages of any city agency, according to data provided by the City Council.
The FDNY said its vaccination rate for firefighters has risen to 75% around 5 p.m. Sunday. The department’s overall vaccination rate is 80%.
More than 1,000 FDNY members have applied for religious exemptions and will be able to continue to work with the weekly COVID tests implemented while their respective Equal Employment Opportunity offices review the claims, a spokesperson told our sister network on Friday. News 4.
The “excessive sick leave” has not had an impact on the department’s response time, the FDNY said over the weekend.
Firefighters responded to a 9-1-1 call for a fire in Washington Heights around 3 a.m. Saturday in just over four minutes, faster than the FDNY average for structure fires.
Friday was the deadline for city workers to show proof that they received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Nigro told News 4 that Friday’s wave of firefighter absences was “unacceptable, contrary to their oaths of service, and may endanger the lives of New Yorkers.”
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