Norwegian Cruise Line CEO Frank Del Rio expressed his disappointment over the government’s lack of COVID vaccine mandates. During his interview on CNBC, he said that “I’m so disappointed in government at the local level, state level, federal that we don’t have mandates”. He added that “Whatever happened to good old leadership in this country?. There is a pandemic going on”.
Del Rio didn’t stop there. He not only expressed his disappointment to the US government but also around the world. He said that “We now live in a global world and it doesn’t do any good if we’re doing one thing everybody else is doing the next”.
Norwegian’s Lawsuit Against Florida
Del Rio made this comment after he discussed the ongoing Norwegian lawsuit with Florida. A federal judge ruled in favor of Norwegian, allowing the cruise operator to require passengers to show proof that they are vaccinated. The judge ruled in favor of the cruise operator even if the state already has a law that bans vaccine passports.
Unfortunately, the legal tussle isn’t over yet. Florida decided to appeal the ruling. Del Rio said during the interview that he was “dumbfounded” by the state’s decision to prolong the case.
Corporations and Vaccine Mandates
Vaccine mandates are now becoming a norm. However, it isn’t an initiative by the government. Instead, private companies are starting to require vaccination on their employees. McDonald’s announced that they are requiring vaccinations for corporate employees.
For the airline industry, Frontier and United want their employees to complete their vaccine doses by October. Other airlines, though not requiring vaccination on their old employees, will only hire vaccinated individuals.
New York City is one of those that made a hardline stance on vaccination. New York City last week would require proof of vaccination for customers and employees of indoor businesses.
Del Rio said that “It’s got to stop and if we don’t take leadership here, this is going to go on forever and ever and ever”.
