Unvaccinated city staff won't have to pay for rapid testing
It was supposed to be a nudge toward getting the shot.
As of December 1, all City of Calgary workers refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19 were supposed to start paying for their own rapid tests.
Instead they'll keep getting the tests for free.
That, after the police chief said free tests supplied by the province to agencies and businesses around Alberta will be given to unvaccinated staff once those testing kits are acquired.
"What's happened is this inequity that's created between unions," said Calgary mayor Jyoti Gondek, "so when the other unions saw police offering it for their members, they came to the city manager and said this is unacceptable. How do you do this for one group of employees and not for another?"
Right now, the city has a vaccination rate among staff of 91.5 per cent. When you take out those who have medical or religious exemptions or are just waiting for a second dose just over 300 people are not vaccinated and don't intend to be.
The City of Calgary's municipal building. (Getty Images)
Christopher Collier is the city's Director of Environmental and Safety Management.
"The free test kits do have an expiry date." he says "So we've basically just extended that free period for a little bit longer. But there will come a day when we don't have any more supply."
Collier says the city has a two to three month supply of surplus tests, so for the near future they will continue to use them for unvaccinated staff.
INCENTIVE TO GET VACCINATED
However critics say forcing people to pay for their own tests was an incentive for them to get vaccinated.
Now that incentive is gone.
Alberta Health, which is providing the testing kits to municipalities, said it's not up to them to decide how the tests are used or distributed.
"This government likes to talk a tough game, but when actually they're put to the test, they usually turn tail and run," said NDP deputy leader Sarah Hoffman. "This is serious, and it has potentially deadly consequences when it continues to fluctuate like this, when we should be putting all our efforts into increasing uptake for vaccines for all age groups."
The province says it's not concerned about running out of tests. It says right now it's giving out six million of them and has another six million in storage.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6947088.1719784078!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
More WestJet flight cancellations as strike hits tens of thousands of travellers
WesJet flight cancellations grew to over 800 Sunday afternoon, upending plans for close to 100,000 passengers as an unexpected strike by plane mechanics entered its third day on the busiest travel weekend of the season.
Neighbour on the hook for $3,675 in damages due to ‘nuisance cedar’: B.C. tribunal
A B.C. man who reneged on a deal to split the cost of removing a tree with his next-door neighbour is now on the hook for the whole amount, B.C.’s civil resolution has ruled.
A study identified 6 types of depression. Here’s why that matters
Scientists may be a step closer to that reality, thanks to new research that has identified six subtypes — or 'biotypes' — of major depression via brain imaging combined with machine learning.
Several U.S. military bases in Europe on heightened alert amid possible terrorist threat
Several U.S. military bases across Europe were put on a heightened state of alert over the weekend, with the level of force protection raised to its second-highest state amid concerns that a terrorist attack could target U.S. military personnel or facilities, according to two U.S. officials.
Are you proud to be Canadian? Poll suggests that feeling is dwindling
A new poll suggests the vast majority of Canadians are proud of their home and native land, but our sense of national pride is lower than it was a few years ago.
Nude beach etiquette: Lose your clothes, not your manners
Most of us have felt the freedom and delight that comes with stripping down to a swimsuit on a sunny day and wading into a cool sea, the horizon twinkling in the distance.
Multiple people injured in RV police chase in Lloydminster: RCMP
Several people were injured Saturday night after a man allegedly stole an occupied RV during a police chase at a campground in Lloydminster.
Canada Day is forecast to be rainy for many this year. Here's a look at weather and fireworks celebrations
Canada turns 157 years old this year, and several fireworks shows across the country are expected to paint the night skies in celebration. Here's a look at the forecast and fireworks celebrations across the country for Canada Day in 2024.
Police seek suspect, probe suspected hate crimes after two Toronto synagogues vandalized
Toronto police say they're investigating a pair of suspected hate-motivated offences after two city synagogues were damaged early Sunday morning.