Universal releases new COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Policy

Universal Orlando has released a new COVID-19 vaccination and testing policy for team members in compliance with the recent Emergency Temporary Standard. That Standard requires all companies with more than 100 employees to require those employees to either be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering while working.

Related – Universal Orlando Guests will not be able to access a major ride early starting January 3rd

Starting January 10, Universal Orlando Resort team members will be required to attest their status of vaccination and provide proof if they are partially or fully vaccinated. Team members who are not vaccinated by February 9, 2022, will be required to be tested weekly (provided initially at Universal Orlando Resort’s expense and on-site) as well as wear a face mask while working.

The following letter was sent to team members yesterday:

“Dear Team Members,

Throughout the pandemic, we have focused on maintaining a safe working environment as our top priority and we will continue doing just that. To that end, we continue to listen to our medical experts as well as monitor developments with government regulations.You may have heard that the Federal government, through the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), issued an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requiring all private employers with 100 or more employees to implement a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy or implement a policy that allows employees to either get vaccinated or to undergo weekly COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering at the workplace.We continue to ask that every Team Member able to do so get vaccinated, including the booster. We strongly believe that vaccinations are the most powerful step we can all take to move us out of the pandemic.

As a reminder, Team Members are able to schedule vaccinations at Walgreens in our TeamCare center. We also have another vaccination and booster event coming up Jan 18-20 so we encourage you to take advantage of that. We recommend you review the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) document, Key Things to Know About COVID-19 Vaccines, to gain valuable information about vaccine efficacy, safety, and the benefits of being vaccinated.
We are pleased that 93% of our Team Members have shared their vaccination status, with a majority being fully vaccinated. That said, there is still a portion of our workforce that are not vaccinated.

In compliance with the OSHA ETS rule, effective today, January 10, 2022, we are implementing the attached COVID-19 Vaccination or Testing Policy accordingly. While I want to highlight a few important requirements here, please take time to carefully review the full policy on AskHR (login required) to ensure you understand all of the requirements.
Any Team Member who has not attested to their vaccination status, must immediately attest and provide proof of their vaccination if partially or fully vaccinated via the Vaccine Attestation section on their Team Member account in AskHR (login required).

If you provide false information and records in your attestation, you will be subject to discipline and may be subject to criminal penalties. Information regarding governmental penalties is provided by OSHA and posted on AskHR.

If you are unable to be fully vaccinated by February 9, 2022, you will be required to follow a strict weekly COVID-19 testing cadence and continue to wear a face covering. The company will initially pay for the testing and will provide the testing onsite at select locations. More details are provided in the policy, and additional information regarding testing protocols and logistics will follow.

We will continue to take a balanced and thoughtful approach to our decisions. That is why we have made the initial decision to allow for the testing option as we feel this aligns to our Team Member First approach by allowing our Team Members to make an informed personal decision.

You may also be aware that some States and private individuals have legally challenged this ETS. Should those legal challenges be successful in amending/removing the ETS, we will adapt accordingly and advise everyone.
We thank you in advance for your continued compliance to our COVID-19 policies. We realize the impact of the pandemic is emotionally draining, at work, at home and in the community, but we will get through this together.
Please visit UOTeam.com/safeandsound site to stay up to-date and connect with your manager, HR business partner or AskHR with any questions about this new policy and what it means for you.”

Related – Face Masks will be required at all public indoor locations at Universal Orlando Resort

Universal will also be hosting a Booster Event for team members January 18-20. Vaccines and booster doses will be offered from 7 am to 5 pm each day. Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson will all be available.

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