Three CNN employees fired for reporting to work unvaccinated

• Three CNN employees who reported to work unvaccinated have since been terminated for violating company policy.
• Media company president Jeff Zucker reminded staff members that there is “a zero-tolerance policy” for reporting to work unvaccinated.
• The media company also delayed a company-wide return to the office.

Three CNN employees have been terminated for violating company policy by reporting to work unvaccinated against COVID-19.

Media company president Jeff Zucker informed staff members of the news in a Thursday memo that also reminded them that vaccines were mandatory for employees who report to the office or in areas where they could come into contact with their colleagues.

“Let me be clear – we have a zero-tolerance policy on this,” wrote Zucker, who is also WarnerMedia chairman of news and sports.

The memo, which was first shared by CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy, did not elaborate on the termination details, or where the fired employees were based.

CNN has reopened most of their offices on a voluntary basis, with more than a third of news staff members returning to work, said Zucker. Showing proof of vaccination was initially left to the honor system, but that could change soon.

Zucker declared that masks will be required in CNN‘s Atlanta, Washington, and Los Angeles offices when people aren’t eating, drinking, or in a closed-off private space.

He added that people should do what feels comfortable to them “without any fear of retaliation or judgment from co-workers” in offices where mask-wearing is not mandated.

The media company had previously planned a company-wide return to the office on September 7. But according to the memo, that could be delayed until at least early to mid-October.

The renewed surge in COVID-19 cases has prompted other media companies, such as the AP, to delay their return to the office.

While there have been rare breakthrough cases of vaccinated people still contracting the disease, the COVID-19 vaccines have proven to be highly effective at preventing serious illness.

Several industries, such as Google, Facebook, and Uber, have now set up workplace policies that require vaccination. Some states, including New York City and California, have required all government workers to get the vaccine or undergo regular testing.

Source: The Guardian