Employees Walk Out Over Company Lifting Vaccine Requirement

​For months, some employers that have required COVID-19 vaccines have gotten pushback or sued by employees opposing the policies. Now workers at one employer, Activision Blizzard, staged a walk-out when the company announced it was lifting a vaccine requirement—an announcement that has since been significantly modified. We've gathered articles on the news from SHRM Online and other media outlets.

Management Concession

The gaming giant's chief administrative officer, Brian Bulatao, sent an e-mail to all U.S. employees announcing the company was lifting its vaccine requirement for all U.S. employees. Employees voiced concern about the plan, especially on behalf of immunocompromised workers returning to the office. Bulatao then said that individual studios at the company could choose whether to enforce a vaccine requirement. Members of the ABK Workers Alliance found the response unsatisfactory, and some employees walked out for one day on April 4. The workers are demanding that the company make work from home an option for all employees and reinstate the vaccine requirement for all studios that haven't taken this action themselves.

(Tech Crunch)

Vaccine Requirement Will Remain in Place at Blizzard Entertainment

The company's different major studios include Activision Publishing, Blizzard and King. Mike Ybarra, the president of Blizzard Entertainment, said that for now the vaccine requirement would remain in place at Blizzard offices, a decision that was echoed by several other offices. The majority of Activision Blizzard's employees are currently allowed back to the office on a voluntary basis, and the company has not set a firm date for a formal return. The walkout was the fourth one for the game publisher since July 2021, as the company has dealt with several workplace issues.

(The Washington Post)

Company Statement

Activision Blizzard issued the following statement: "The health and safety of our employees is at the absolute forefront of everything we do, including our return-to-office policy. While Activision Blizzard's U.S. vaccine mandate has been lifted, for the majority of our employees, we are still operating under a voluntary return-to-office opportunity. In addition, employees who are not comfortable returning to the office are encouraged to work with their manager and our HR team to explore options for working arrangements that suit their individual situations. We will continue to monitor conditions and make adjustments to the policy as needed."

(Polygon)

Other Companies Have Rescinded Vaccine Requirements

Companies such as Adidas, Starbucks and Intel have rescinded their vaccine requirements for workers in recent months after the Supreme Court in January struck down the Biden administration's vaccine-or-testing rule for businesses with at least 100 workers. In California, a proposed bill that would have required all employees and independent contractors to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment has been shelved.

(Los Angeles Times via Yahoo!Finance)

United Has Eased Its Vaccine Requirement

Noting the decline in the number of coronavirus cases, United Airlines told employees on March 10 that those with exemptions from its mandatory vaccine policy could return to their former positions as of March 28.

(SHRM Online)

Vaccination Requirement for Health Care Workers

The U.S. Supreme Court has let the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services require COVID-19 vaccination for health care workers at Medicare- and Medicaid-certified providers and suppliers.

(SHRM Online)