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| Mayor Bill de Blasio |
New York City public school teachers submit an emergency petition to the Supreme Court to prevent Mayor Bill de Blasio's COVID-19 vaccine mandate from taking effect at 5 p.m. Friday.
The teachers' group has sent a petition to Judge Sonia Sotomayor requesting an emergency order to block the mandate.
They argue that the mandate places an "unconstitutional burden" on teachers and "threatens the education of thousands of children."
Teachers at all public schools in the Big Apple have until 5 p.m. Friday to get the vaccine shot against COVID-19 or risk losing their jobs.
Unlike most vaccine mandates, the rule does not allow unvaccinated employees to undergo a weekly COVID-19 test instead of getting the shot.
Bill de Blasio said Monday that 87% of all city education department employees had been at least partially vaccinated, including 90% of teachers.
The New York Department of Education employs 148,000 school workers, including 75,000 teachers — which means about 7,500 teachers could face the ax.
The group of four teachers has sent a petition to Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor arguing that the mandate not only places an "unconstitutional burden" on the city's 148,000 school workers but also "threatens the education of thousands of children."
The petition argues that their rights are being violated because they do not have the option to undergo regular COVID-19 testing instead of getting the shot.
When the school day begins the following Monday — October 4 — all teachers and staff who arrive to work in city public schools will receive at least their first dose of the vaccine.
Unlike most vaccine mandates set up like the federal government and private companies across the country, the rule does not allow unvaccinated employees to take a weekly COVID-19 test instead of getting the shot.
Instead, anyone who is still not immune by the deadline will be fired from their jobs.
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