Vaccine requirement announced for City and County of Honolulu employees

News Release from City and County of Honolulu, August 11, 2021

HONOLULU – To combat the rise in COVID-19 cases on O‘ahu and further protect the members of our communities, all City and County of Honolulu employees will be required to provide proof that they are fully vaccinated, have completed a single-dose vaccine or initiated the first dose of a two-dose series by Aug. 16, 2021. Employees opting for the two-dose series must receive their second shot by Sept. 16, 2021.

City employees with medical or religious reasons for not taking the vaccine will be subject to mandatory testing once a week and must request an exemption from the City by Aug. 16, 2021. For these employees exempt from the vaccine requirement, details on City and County testing options will be disseminated by their departments.

“The health and safety of our City workforce and the communities they serve is our top priority,” said Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi. “That is why we must take swift action to protect as many people as possible from the harmful effects of COVID-19, especially because of the highly contagious and dangerous Delta variant. Coronavirus vaccinations are safe, easy, and effective. Almost all of the cases, hospitalizations, and deaths we are seeing are among the unvaccinated. Please do not take an unnecessary risk - sign up to get vaccinated today. We want to thank those who have already taken the steps to protect themselves and those around them by getting vaccinated.”

Consistent with the CDC, people are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second dose in a two-dose series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine.

These vaccine requirements for City employees are enforceable through disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

Mask rules, sanitizing measures, and physical distancing will continue to be enforced at City and County of Honolulu facilities. To find a vaccination site, visit https://www.oneoahu.org/.

—PAU—