Good news! NYC branch of largest US hospital workers union (1.9 mio members) rejects Covid vaxx mandate; so does new president of the AMA!!!!

Largest healthcare union in US comes out against mandatory COVID vaccination. The leader of the Service Employees International Union vowed that ‘we are not going to just give in’ to threats to receive the shots or lose your job.

By Matt Lamb

June 24, 2021 (LifeSiteNews) — The largest healthcare union in the United States said that its members should not be forced to take a vaccination against COVID-19.

*** This union has almost 1.9 MILLION MEMBERS

Wiki:

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is a labor union representing almost 1.9 million workers[2] in over 100 occupations in the United States and Canada.[1] SEIU is focused on organizing workers in three sectors: healthcare (over half of members work in the healthcare field), including hospital, home care and nursing home workers; public services (government employees, including law enforcement); and property services (including janitors, security guards and food service workers).

SEIU has over 150 local branches. It is affiliated with the Change to Win Federation and the Canadian Labour Congress. SEIU’s international headquarters is located in Washington, D.C. and it is one of the largest unions in the country.[3]

The union is known for its strong support for Democratic candidates. It spent $28 million supporting Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. In 2012, SEIU was the top outside spender on Democratic campaigns, reporting almost $70 million of campaign donations, television ads and get-out-the-vote efforts in support of President Obama and other Democrats.[4] SEIU is a major supporter of the Affordable Care Act[5] and of increased minimum wage laws, including wage increases for fast food workers.[6][7] The union is the primary backer of the Fight for $15.[8][9]

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“Whether there is a legal challenge that we can make, or whether it’s just a pure organizational challenge that we can make, we are not going to just give in,” George Gresham of SEIU Local 1199 said to New York publication Gothamist. The Service Employees International Union has been a key ally for the Democratic Party.

*** a very high percentage of Blacks reject the Covid “vaccine,” as does Gresham, and I have no doubt that a high percentage of hospital workers are Black.

***

[source: https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/largest-healthcare-union-in-us-comes-out-against-mandatory-covid-vaccination]

Gresham, president of the SEIU local, was reacting to news that New York Presbyterian Hospital would require all of its employees to receive a COVID vaccine, despite none of them having full FDA approval. Furthermore, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently warned about heart inflammation risks to people under 30 who receive the vaccine.

Gresham had previously voiced his opposition to mandatory vaccinations.

“We are not in agreement with a mandate of the COVID-19 vaccine. A hard-handed approach will not work and will only create greater frustration for the healthcare heroes who have been battling this pandemic every day for the last 15 months,” Gresham, who has received the vaccine, said in a June 11 statement.

A memo from the hospital said that “all employees must take at least one COVID-19 shot by September 1st to keep their jobs,” according to Gothamist’s paraphrase of the directive. “Those seeking a medical or religious exemption must apply for one by August 1st. About 70 percent of staff at New York-Presbyterian have been vaccinated so far,” the website reported.

The New York State Nurses’ Association has also come out against mandatory vaccination.

“NYSNA strongly opposes the mandatory vaccination of health care providers for COVID-19 as a condition of employment or as a state or federal mandate,” the union said. “NYSNA calls for independent scientific reviews of all vaccine trial data at both the federal and state levels to assure those who wish to be vaccinated of the safety of all FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccines.”

The pushback from unions is similar to what New York Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo faced when he tried to mandate COVID vaccines at public universities.

Cuomo, who is currently under investigation relating to COVID nursing home deaths, required all students at State University of New York and City University of New York to receive the jab.

However, he exempted faculty and staff from the requirements because of union contracts.

“It will be absolutely crucial in getting back to a sense of normalcy in our campus communities,” Fred Kowal, a leader in a teachers union, said in praise of the mandate. However, Kowal does not want the vaccine mandated for his own constituents.

“It would require negotiations with (his union),” The Buffalo News reported.

Gerald Harmon, president of the American Medical Association, has said his group opposes COVID vaccine mandates, at least for the time being. He said such directives are “a blunt instrument and may carry the risk of eroding trust and undermining public health goals.”