In St. Petersburg, opponents of compulsory vaccination are preparing for a strike

Representatives of several business associations told Fontanka that the St. Petersburg industry may face difficulties due to the mandatory vaccination of employees. Rospotrebnadzor demands to vaccinate 80% of personnel without a discount on the number of patients who have been ill, and doctors refuse to vaccinate them. Because of this, the business risks being faced with a choice: receive a suspension of activities from the sanitary department or earn fines from the Labor Inspectorate and be left without employees.

Alla Hovhannisyan, coordinator of the North-West Regional Committee of the Association of European Businesses (AEB), posed the question to the city leadership in the profile chat. According to the decree of the chief sanitary doctor of St. Petersburg, industrial enterprises must vaccinate 80% of employees by January 15. But the transferred disease COVID-19 is not attributed to the reasons that exempt from vaccination.

“This circumstance leads to the need to vaccinate persons who have had the specified disease, including those who recovered less than six months ago”, - Alla Hovhannisyan said. In this regard, the business would like to receive from the authorities either an explanation, or an amendment to the regulation, which would exempt those who had been ill from vaccination, and employers from fines.

The question is not idle. According to the AEB, more than 20% of those who have recovered from COVID-19 at industrial enterprises, which creates a problem in meeting the standard of 80%.

Now at the factories of the city, the level of herd immunity is about 60%, but taking into account those who have recovered, the AEB believes. At the same time, polyclinics are not too willing to give medical treatment.

Employers also fear that an attempt to remove employees from work will lead to complaints to the Labor Inspectorate. And there is no 100% certainty that she will not side with the team.

“40-45% do not want to get vaccinated. Almost a civil battle is starting”, - said Igor Temchenko, chairman of the trade union in St. Petersburg. According to him, misunderstanding is caused, in particular, by the fact that they will be allowed to work only with a certificate of antibodies, but everyone will still be able to travel in transport during rush hour.