Reports suggest Washington will not suffer widespread staff shortages as vaccine deadline expires

When Gov. Jay Inslee made vaccination against COVID-19 a condition of employment for hundreds of thousands of Washington workers, the immediate response from critics was that the requirement would lead to crippling employee shortages across the state.

It’s too early to tell definitively what effect the mandate will have on Washington’s workforce, but initial reports from the state indicate those critics were likely wrong.  

The mandate applies to most employees in the state’s government agencies, schools, universities and health care facilities. They had until yesterday to be fully vaccinated. Those who aren’t could soon be fired.

Last week, Inslee said 92% of state employees are fully vaccinated. When the mandate was first announced, the number of state employees fully vaccinated was 48%, he said.

“This is extremely gratifying,” Inslee said at a news conference on Thursday. “It is gratifying because we now know there will not be a mass exodus of state employees, and we will be able to continue essential state services for people in Washington.”

A recent report from state Office of Financial Management shows varying rates of vaccination between the state’s largest agencies: 94% among Department of Social and Health Services employees; 93% among Department of Transportation employees; 89% of Department of Children, Youth, and Families employees; 92% of Department of Labor & Industries employees; and 90% of Washington State Patrol employees.

The state allowed exemptions to the mandates for medical and religious reasons. According to the OFM report, the state had received 6,077 exemption requests — 4,849 religious and 1,228 medical — from state employees as of Oct. 4. The state had approved 5,085 of them by that date.

The mandate did not include state workers employed by an agency under the direction of an elected leader that’s not the governor, such as the Department of Natural Resources and the Secretary of State’s office.

With regard to health care workers, a recent survey from the Washington State Hospital Association found 88% of the state’s hospital workers are fully vaccinated, with 94% of hospitals reporting. The survey did not include workers in other types of health care facilities, such as independent physicians’ offices and nursing homes.

The survey said the remaining 12% of unvaccinated hospital workers are “a mix of staff who are partially vaccinated, have an approved exemption and accommodation, have applied or plan to apply for an exemption that has not yet been reviewed, have not yet provided verification, or are choosing not to be vaccinated.”

Officials estimate that 2% to 5% of hospital staff statewide — between 3,000 and 7,500 employees — could leave the workforce because of the mandate, the survey said.  

The most unknown element in this discussion is what effect the mandate will have on school staff. Employees in the state’s public and private K-12 schools, universities, colleges and childcare centers are all subject.

The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction will begin collecting data from school districts and higher ed institutions on Tuesday, said Katy Payne, an OSPI spokesperson. That data will be publicly shared at the end of the month, she said.

While state leaders are optimistic that the mandate won’t create widespread worker shortages, some local institutions — King County and the City of Seattle also have vaccine requirements in place for their county and city workers — are worried the requirement will exacerbate already existing shortages.

Seattle Public Schools — the largest school district in the state — suspended 142 school bus routes Monday, while King County Metro cancelled more than 100 bus trips between Thursday and Friday. More than 140 sailings were recently canceled by Washington State Ferries.

Workers who weren’t fully vaccinated by Monday won’t be fired immediately in many cases. Labor unions throughout the state have negotiated extensions and accommodations for thousands of workers in recent weeks.

For example, in September, the Washington Federation of State Employees came to a deal with Inslee’s administration to allow thousands of non-union-represented state employees extra time to get vaccinated before they lose their jobs.

Under the deal, state employees who got a late start on getting vaccinated can use 30 days of unpaid leave to complete the process. Additionally, workers whose exemption applications were denied by the state can use 45 days of unpaid leave to get vaccinated.

Those who had their exemption applications approved, but whose employer couldn’t make an accommodation in which they would interact with fewer people, can also take advantage of that 45-day grace period.

The Washington State Hospital Association also said it expects its member facilities will also grant extra time to workers who had initiated the vaccination process but weren’t fully vaccinated by Monday.