Given today’s travel demand, it’s no secret that the aviation industry is looking to expand its manpower. However, unvaccinated candidates will soon realize that they are at a disadvantage. United Airlines announced that they will only hire fully vaccinated individuals starting this month.
This new rule requires new employees hired after June 15 to show proof that they’ve been fully vaccinated once they start working for the Chicago-based airline. However, United isn’t the only one that required vaccination for their new employees. Delta Air Lines made the same move last month.
In a statement, “As we welcome new employees to the company, it’s important we instill in them United’s Strong commitment to safety”. The statement added that “Effective for all job offers made after June 15, 2021, we will require any external candidates for US-based jobs to attest that they have been fully vaccinated against COVID19 by their start date”.
Hiring Fully Vaccinated Individuals
According to United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby in January, they are likely going to follow other airlines if they mandate employees to get vaccinated. He calls it the “right thing to do”. Kirby said that “We need some others to show leadership, particularly in the health care industry”. He added that “If others go along and are willing to start to mandate vaccines, you should probably expect United to be amongst the first wave of companies that do it”.
Aside from Delta and United, other airlines haven’t announced their intention to only hire fully vaccinated individuals. An American Airlines spokesperson said that they are encouraging their employees to get vaccinated and even offered incentives. However, the American Airlines spokesperson said in an email that “we do not plan to require the vaccine unless it’s mandatory for entry into certain destinations”.
Hiring Spree
Following a rough year, US carriers are looking to meet the recent surge in demand from passengers. Sara Nelson who is the president of the Association of Flight Attendants said that “I think the current carriers are eager to get as many flights back in the air as possible”. The labor group even estimates that the flight attendant jobs will jump from 80,000 to 100,000 in two years.
