COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate

This page was last updated on September 28, 2021 at 9:10 AM.

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COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate Update

All staff must continue to report to their regular work site on Tuesday, September 28 and for the remainder of this week. This includes staff who are not yet vaccinated and those who applied for or received a vaccine exemption.

On Monday, September 27 the Second Circuit dissolved the temporary injunction placed on the vaccine mandate. This means that all staff who have not yet uploaded proof of vaccination should do so immediately using the DOE Vaccination Portal.

Here is what this means for staff who have not uploaded proof of vaccination:

  • Unvaccinated staff must report to work this week, and upload a proof of negative COVID test result in the DOE Vaccination Portal.
  • Unvaccinated staff must submit proof of vaccination by 11:59PM on Friday, October 1 in the DOE Vaccination Portal.
  • Unvaccinated staff, who do not have an approved exemption, will be removed from payroll beginning Monday, October 4 if they are not vaccinated by end of day Friday, October 1.

Get more information about where to get vaccinated (or call 877-VAX-4-NYC).

DOE Vaccine Portal

The Vaccination Portal allows you to provide the DOE your vaccination status and to upload proof of vaccination, which can be an image of your vaccination card, NYS Excelsior Pass, or another government record. Submitting this information will support New York City’s pandemic response and recovery efforts, and help ensure that the DOE is a safe place to work for all employees.

Privacy and Security

The privacy and security of your information will be protected by technical, physical, and administrative safeguards, including encryption. This information will be kept confidential in accordance with federal, state, and local laws. 

Technical Support

If you encounter technical issues using the Vaccination Portal, please contact the DOE Help Desk by opening a ticket online or calling 718-935-5100. 

Flyer for Vaccine Portal How-to

Print and hang this flyer to help staff and families know how to upload proof of vaccination.

Testing Requirements 

Between 9/13 and 9/27: Any employees/contractors who have not provided proof that they have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine must submit a weekly negative COVID-19 PCR test (rapid or non-rapid) test by the end of each week (9/19 and 9/26 . If testing is happening at your school/office, staff will be able to get tested on-site. When testing is not happening at your school/office, staff are eligible for up to one hour of additional pay or leave (for staff with annual leave) to get tested outside of work hours [not release time].

For pedagogical staff who cannot be tested at their school/office, normal timekeeping procedures should be followed to track the up to one hour of per session for weekly testing. For administrative staff, the code CVT (Corona Virus Testing -- 1 Hour) has been created in Cybershift and should be used to track up to one hour of leave time for weekly testing if not available at their school/office. 

Reasonable Accommodations

COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate Related Exemption or Accommodation

Employees may now apply for a COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate Related Exemption or Accommodation. This COVID-19 Vaccine Related Exemption and Accommodation application is for:

  • Religious Exemption requests to the mandatory vaccination policy
  • Medical Exemption requests to the mandatory vaccination policy
  • Medical Accommodation requests where an employee is vaccinated but is unable to mount an immune response to COVID-19 due to preexisting immune conditions.

Application Process

Applications should be made via the following process: 

  • Applications must be made using the Self-Service Online Leave Application System. 
  • In SOLAS, employees should select the initial option to "Request Accommodation" and then the option to apply for an Exemption and Accommodation for COVID Vaccine-Related Reasons, and then indicate the category for the application.
  • All applications require supporting documentation which must be submitted at the time of application.

Applications from UFT-represented employees must be made by 5:00 pm on Monday, September 20. Deadlines for other employee groups may apply.

Eligibility

At this time, all regular employees may apply for this vaccine-related exemption and accommodation. Applications will be reviewed in accordance with applicable law and agreements/awards with their collective bargaining unit.

Other Accommodation Requests 

For employees applying for other accommodation requests, the regular, pre-pandemic reasonable accommodation application is available online. All applications will require up to date, supporting medical documentation and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis consistent with the law. 

If you would like to request such an accommodation, please use the Self-Service Online Leave Application System. 

Newly-Hired Employees

Effective August 2, 2021, all persons newly hired for City employment (including NYCDOE employment) must provide proof of having received at least one dose of an approved COVID-19 vaccine (note that new employees who have completed a first vaccination dose at the beginning of their employment will be required to complete any remaining doses).

Newly-hired NYCDOE employees must use the Vaccination Portal to upload proof of vaccination.