NYC mayor wins court case requiring vaccines

NEW YORK - New York City mayor Bill de Blasio is relishing another court victory for requiring COVID-19 vaccines.

Mayor de Blasio said, "The city of New York has a right to put a vaccine mandate in place for adults who work in our public schools period end of process federal appeals exhausted the mandate moves forward.

A federal appeals court judge ruled that New York City public school teachers and other Department of Education workers must get the COVID-19 vaccine or risk losing their jobs.

The mayor announced Monday evening that Department of Education workers would have until 5 p.m. on Friday to get at least one shot.

"If you have not gotten that first dose by Friday 5 O'clock we will assume you will not be coming to work Monday and you will not be paid starting Monday we will fill your role with a substitute or an alternative employee," he said.

The mayor says an overwhelming majority of teachers have been vaccinated. A smaller group sued the city calling the vaccine mandate a violation of their constitutional rights.

Louis Gelormino is one of the lawyers representing about 28,000 workers in a class-action lawsuit opposing the mandate. He says about 14,000 in that group are teachers.

"None of them are conspiracy theorists. None of them are anti-government most of them just want to make their own choice," Gelormino said.  "A lot of them, and I mean a lot, of them are pregnant women. I'm getting calls every day from pregnant women, hysterical, crying that they're going to lose their job because they don't want to get vaccinated."

New York state hospital, nursing home, and health care workers also must be vaccinated. Although some are fighting it in court a ruling on that case is expected later this week.

Some health care workers are suing the state saying they are entitled to a religious exemption.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul feels confident she will win that legal challenge.

Governor Hochul says anyone refusing to get the shot will be fired and replaced. Using her executive powers the governor plans if necessary to deploy medically-trained National Guard members to understaffed hospitals.