Piedmont University has mandated that all employees – including student workers – get vaccinated against COVID-19 or face termination.
The deadline as set forth in an Oct. 20 email to all employees is Dec. 3. All employees who are already vaccinated must provide proof of such by Dec. 3.
The email lays out that “fully vaccinated” means it has been more than two weeks since their second dose of Pfzier or Moderna or their lone shot of Johnson & Johnson.
That leaves little wiggle room on the timeline for those who have not taken a shot. Anyone who read the email and wanted Moderna has already missed the deadline, and Pfizer users will need to take the first shot by Oct. 30 to make the Dec. 3 deadline.
Johnson & Johnson users must get the single dose by Nov. 19.
“Failure to comply with this requirement will require the University to conclude your employment, which we would very much regret,” the email reads.
The email indicates the school is taking steps to “ensure compliance with upcoming regulations” forthcoming from the Biden Administration through OSHA.
Appeals for religious or medical reasons can be submitted to the school by Nov. 1 in writing.
Rachel Pleasant, Piedmont’s communications director, did not offer further information.
“Piedmont is taking steps to ensure compliance with the federal mandate, but because this is a human resources requirement, and because we are a private institution, we will not be making the details public,” Pleasant said.
Piedmont’s general student population is not required to be vaccinated.
According to the Department of Public Health, Habersham County’s seven-day moving average for COVID-19 positive cases has dropped back to 5.6, its lowest level since Aug. 2 (4.7).
Since the pandemic began, COVID-19 has killed 184 residents of Habersham County.
DPH data shows 55 percent of Georgians have had at least one dose of the vaccine, with 49 percent fully vaccinated.
In Habersham County, it’s 44 percent with at least one dose and 40 percent fully vaccinated.
North Georgia Technical College does not mandate vaccines for either its staff or its students.
In the private sector, employees at the Ethicon plant in Cornelia were required to be vaccinated by Oct. 4.