International Business: United Airlines to let unvaccinated employees return to jobs March 28 – Gulf Digital News

International Business: United Airlines to let unvaccinated employees return to jobs March 28 – Gulf Digital News

WASHINGTON: United Airlines said Thursday it will allow unvaccinated employees to return to their jobs starting March 28 and asked a federal appeals court to dismiss a legal challenge to the Covid-19 mandate as moot.

The Chicago-based US carrier said in a memo about 2,200 employees had received vaccine-related reasonable accommodations after it had become the first major U.S. airline to mandate employee vaccines.

"We plan to welcome back those employees who have been out on an approved (accommodation) to their normal positions starting" March 28, the memo said.

United told a federal appeals court Thursday the new policy was "due to substantial changes in the scope and severity of the pandemic as well as the guidance of public-health authorities."

United said the change applies to all employees who were placed on temporary unpaid leave as well as those temporarily placed in other jobs.

United Chief Executive Scott Kirby in December said that, of the company's 67,000 employees, about 200 did not comply with United's mandate and were fired. A United official said the airline has no plans to rehire those employees.

The memo noted the sharp decline in Covid-19 cases in the United States and that the CDC recently relaxed its mask guidelines.

The memo