The Vatican is reportedly warning employees that they may lose their employment if they refuse to receive a COVID-19 vaccine without a good reason.
Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello, the de facto governor of Vatican City, issued a seven-page decree warning that those who refused to get a COVID-19 vaccine without a valid health reason could be dismissed from their position, Reuters reported Thursday.
Citing a 2011 law on employee rights, the decree gave employers the ability to subject employees who “refuse preventative measures” to “varying degrees of consequences that could lead to dismissal,” Reuters reported.
No jab, no job: Vatican gets tough with COVID anti-vaxxers. “It is an ethical choice because you are gambling with your health, with your life, but you are also gambling with the lives of others” https://t.co/fO2kFuCWsS
— Crispian Balmer (@crispiandjb) February 18, 2021
The decree also said that those who refused the vaccine and had a valid health reason to do so could be given another position with less contact with people, and would not receive a deduction in pay if it was a demotion, Reuters reported. (RELATED: CEO Of United Airlines Calls For Companies To Mandate COVID Vaccine
Bertello said that getting a vaccine was the “responsible choice” due to the risk of harming other people from the virus, Reuters reported. Bertello had tested positive for the virus himself in December.
The Vatican has also made vaccination for the COVID-19 virus obligatory for journalists who plan to accompany Pope Francis when he travels to Iraq in early March, Reuters reported.
LATEST: Pope Francis and his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to Vatican spokesman. https://t.co/scZgpIJK4s pic.twitter.com/Y53urczOBY
— ABC News (@ABC) January 14, 2021
The Pope and his predecessor received their doses of the vaccine in mid-January.