Duke employees who do not receive COVID-19 vaccine by Oct. 1 will be terminated, ineligible for rehire

In a message sent to employees, Duke leaders said faculty and staff can apply for a medical or religious exemption, but anyone approved will still have to do daily symptom monitoring, weekly surveillance testing, wear a mask and other COVID-19 safety protocols.

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Employees have until 10 a.m. to receive and show documentation of vaccination. Duke officials said so far, 91 percent of employees have already completed the requirement.

Those who have not shown they are fully vaccinated by the deadline will be placed on administrative leave. Employees will then have seven days to either receive the single-dose Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine or the first dose of the Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

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If an employee does not receive a vaccine in those seven days, they will be terminated. Those who do receive a Moderna or Prizer vaccine dose in those seven days will have six weeks to provide documentation that they received the required second dose. If the second dose is not administered in the six weeks, the employee will be fired.

Employees that are fired for not receiving a vaccine will not be eligible to be rehired, according to Duke officials.

Vaccines are currently required for Duke students and faculty. Duke is one of the only major universities in the area to mandate vaccines.

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