Goldman Sachs Makes Vaccination Must As Delta Variant Continues To Spread

Employees of Goldman Sachs Group (GS) have to complete their vaccinations to enter their office in the United States, according to an internal memo sent to the workers on Tuesday, seen by Reuters.

The memo also said that the employees, regardless of their vaccination status, will have to wear masks in the bank from Wednesday onwards and the company will also arrange for weekly covid tests from September 7. The mandate does not spare any medical or religious reasons. Those who have not been inoculated yet will have to work from home as of now. Employees in the branches that are in “high-risk’ zones, marked by the CDC, will have to wear their masks at all times, except while eating and drinking.

Earlier this week, the Pfizer vaccine got full approval from the FDA. According to the regulators, the vaccine is safe and secure. This announcement has helped to convince the people about the safety of the vaccine and the government expects that it will increase the rate of vaccination. With more than 171,000 people testing positive on Wednesday alone, the vaccination needs to be stepped up rapidly to avoid a more calamitous situation.

Talking about the remote-working situation, the CEO of the company, David Solomon said in February, “I do think for a business like ours which is an innovative, collaborative apprenticeship culture, this is not ideal for us and it’s not a new normal. It’s an aberration that we’re going to correct as quickly as possible.”

Goldman Sachs, like many other companies, dropped the mask mandates back in June when the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention had said that it is safe for fully vaccinated individuals to stop wearing masks. But as the Delta variant keeps on ravaging the country, CDC advised reintroducing the mask mandates. Goldman Sachs will also allow a half-day paid leave for the employees to get jabbed.

Apart from Goldman Sachs, Citigroup Inc (C) and Morgan Stanley (MS) have also reintroduced the mask mandates. Major names yet to make it mandatory for the employees to vaccinate include JP Morgan Chase & Co (JPM), Bank of America Corporation (BAC), and Wells Fargo and Co (WFC).

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