Dear Colleagues,
On Nov. 10, President Biden revised the deadline by which covered employees of organizations that hold certain federal contracts must receive their final COVID-19 vaccine dose. Under the Executive Order 14042 and related guidance, covered federal contractors like the University of Mary Washington previously had until Dec. 8 to have their workforce fully vaccinated. The new compliance deadline is now Jan. 18, 2022.
This email is to inform you that UMW accordingly will move its deadline for employees to receive their final vaccination dose to Jan. 18, 2022.
Several details about this Jan. 18 deadline are important:
- Based on the scope of the executive order, the University determined that it would require all University employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 unless they have an approved religious or medical exemption.
- If you have not applied for an exemption and are not yet vaccinated, we encourage you to make your appointment for a vaccine as soon as possible in order to ensure that you meet the new deadline. Here are the timelines for getting vaccinated that must be met to ensure compliance with the Jan. 18 deadline, specific to each type of vaccine:
- Moderna vaccine: Get the first shot by Dec. 21, 2021 and second by Jan. 18, 2022.
- Pfizer vaccine: Get the first shot by Dec. 28, 2021 and second by Jan. 18, 2022.
- Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose vaccine: Get the shot by Jan. 18, 2022.
- More than 95% of UMW employees are already vaccinated, and this revised deadline does not affect them.
To request an exemption, complete the COVID-19 Vaccination Medical Exemption Request form or the COVID-19 Vaccination Religious Exemption Request form and upload to the Faculty/Staff Vaccine Survey. Exemption requests must be received no later than 5:00 p.m., Friday, December 10 in order to provide time for review, approval, or requests for additional information if needed.
The federal vaccination requirement includes all full-time and part-time employees, including employees working remotely. After Jan. 18, anyone who is not in compliance, either by being vaccinated or receiving a University-approved exemption, will be subject to disciplinary action consistent with the University’s policies, up to and including unpaid leave or termination.
We will continue to monitor conditions and provide regular updates. We thank those who have been vaccinated, and continue to encourage you to wear masks when appropriate and stay home if you are not feeling well in order to help limit the spread of the virus.
Thank you,
The Public Health Advisory Work Group
