31 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,N ovem ber 11,2021 insidehalton.com We Will Always Remember Our Brave Men and Women Check out our new website More than 95 per cent of all municipal workers have met the Oct. 31 dead- line to be vaccinated, the Town of Oakville reports. Less than four per cent have been placed on un- paid leave. "The town is actively working with staff who are not fully vaccinated to get back into the work- place," the town told the Oakville Beaver in an emailed statement. "Once they become fully vacci- nated, they can return to their roles. We fully ex- pect this number (four per cent) to lower in the com- ing weeks." The town didn't pro- vide a breakdown of num- bers for inside workers, outside workers and fire- fighters to "ensure we do not expose any employ- ee's personal information or potentially make them identifiable." The town did say that, while the number fluctu- ates with seasonal and part-time staffing needs, there are a total of 1,750 employees working for the Town of Oakville. If 96 per cent compiled with the mandate deadline, that means roughly 1,680 people may have been vac- cinated. And roughly 70 people, comprising four per cent of the workforce, may have been put on leave. At a special meeting on Sept. 13, the town laid out the terms of the vaccine mandate. Workers had to disclose their vaccine sta- tus on Sept. 20. Workers then had until Oct. 31, last Sunday, to be fully vacci- nated. The town's COVID-19 vaccine procedure pro- vides for accommoda- tions based on Ontario Human Rights Code. A se- vere allergy confirmed by an allergist or immunolo- gist or myocarditis or pericarditis diagnosis af- ter the first dose are listed as legitimate medical rea- sons. "There is no require- ment under the Ontario Human Rights Code to ac- commodate a refusal to be fully vaccinated for per- sonal reasons or arising from a political belief and/or principles," states the town's procedure. "Po- litical belief, such as the objection to receiving the vaccination on a princi- pled basis, is not a protect- ed ground under the Code." Chris Clapham, presi- dent of CUPE 1329, says that the statement "is pretty typical of one we've seen from the corporation (of the Town Oakville) with regard to vaccina- tion, so we aren't sur- prised. "The percentage of em- ployees that are fully vac- cinated is really high. That's really encouraging for the employees who are looking forward to getting back to work in a work- space that's promoting public health and safety within the town." Clapham and his union still feels that the town "could have done a better job with regard to con- sulting the unions and the employees." At the Sept. 13 meeting, he said he felt the Sept. 20 deadline was not enough time to edu- cate workers, retrieve documents and file for ac- commodation. He also wished that rapid antigen testing was extended. "We're still of the opin- ion there could have been multiple alternatives ex- plored versus the way the policy did get approved," he said. The Oakville Beaver reached out to CUPE 136, representing outside workers, and the Oakville Professional Firefighters Association Local 1582 for comment. Neither provid- ed a response by deadline. MOST MUNICIPAL WORKERS VACCINATED Roughly 95 per cent of all municipal employees have been fully vaccinated. Graham Paine/Metroland MANSOOR TANWEER mtanweer@metroland.com NEWS REMAINDER PLACED ON UNPAID LEAVE The Halton Healthcare Hospital Foundation is asking for donations to prop it up due to a shortage. The COVID-19 pandem- ic and its effect on the sup- ply chain has led to a short- age of aluminum crutches. On average, 300 sets of crutches are used each month in the emergency departments of Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospi- tal, Milton District Hospi- tal and Georgetown Hospi- tal. The foundation is ask- ing anyone who has crutch- es that are not being used to donate them to the hospi- tal. Crutches that are do- nated will be inspected, cleaned and then offered to patients who need them. Patients will not be charged for the donated crutches. Crutches can be dropped off in donation bins at the following hospi- tal entrances: west ambu- latory entrance, Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospi- tal; maternal newborn en- trance, Milton District Hospital; south entrance, Georgetown Hospital. GIVE HOSPITALS A LEG-UP WITH DONATION OF CRUTCHES Area hospitals are asking for donations of crutches. Graham Paine/Metroland HERB GARBUTT hgarbutt@metroland.com