New City Hall COVID protocols are boosting Fresno employee vaccination rate, officials say
Fresno city officials say checking vaccination records and requiring unvaccinated employees to undergo weekly COVID-19 testing has encouraged hundreds of employees to get vaccinated.
But at least one employee resigned from their city of Fresno job last week because of new mandatory testing, and thousands of other city employees remain unvaccinated.
Since Mayor Jerry Dyer announced the new protocols last month — requiring masks inside the workplace, seeking proof of vaccination and requiring weekly testing for the unvaccinated — several hundred additional employees have produced vaccination records, said Sontaya Rose, the city’s communications director.
After the new protocols went into effect last week, city officials tallied about 2,284 of 4,480 employees underwent testing. Initially, city officials estimated last month about 2,600 employees would require testing.
“It seems to be going smoothly,” said Sam Frank, president of the Fresno City Employees Association union. “Nobody’s said, ‘Hey, I wasn’t able to get tested.’ But people have had to basically roll with it.”
Frank said as the new protocols neared, at least two of his immediate coworkers got their first vaccine shots.
“I think it’s working as an incentive,” he said.
At least four employees tested positive for COVID-19 last week, Rose said. Some were asymptomatic.
“That shows this testing process is working” she said.
UCSF Fresno is providing the testing clinics, with 20 pop-up sites at various city work locations that are open from 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. with staggered start and stop times. The tests are PCR nasal swabs, and 18 employees so far have sought medical exemptions to instead use saliva swabs.
Countywide, at least 50% of the population is fully vaccinated. Over 57% of county residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
This story was originally published September 27, 2021 at 1:22 PM.