COVID-19 Vaccine Rules Spur Job Hunt for Some in Silicon Valley

After President Biden set a Jan. 4 deadline for companies to ensure employees are vaccinated against COVID-19, many employers wasted no time. Companies, including many in Silicon Valley, bolstered their workplace policies to enforce the rule.

Professionals wasted no time either. But instead of rushing to share their vaccination status with their employer or booking COVID-19 vaccine appointments to comply, some in Silicon Valley started job hunting.

“Need a new job,” explained a verified Visa professional on the professional social network Blind. The payments company employee had asked which tech companies are not implementing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

After the Biden administration’s announcement searches for different companies’ COVID-19 vaccine policies on Blind increased as much as 200% in the first week of November compared to the previous month.

The 10 most searched companies on Blind, among COVID-19 vaccine-related queries, in early November were: Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook, VMware, Apple, Oracle, Adobe, IBM and Cisco.

‘Get the vaccine or else you will be laid off.’

Under the Biden administration’s rule, professionals can remain unvaccinated against COVID-19 as long as they test negative once a week and do not work as healthcare workers or federal contractors.

Employers can also implement more rigorous controls.

Some companies are placing unvaccinated employees on unpaid leave. United Airlines popularized this practice earlier this year when it said it would put some unvaccinated customer service agents, flight attendants and pilots on unpaid leave until the pandemic ended. The airline required all of its U.S. employees to be vaccinated by October.

“IBM, all US employees must be vaccinated or they’ll be placed on unpaid leave,” reported a verified IBM professional in a running list of companies requiring a COVID-19 vaccine to work in the office. “This is so the company can be compliant with the federal mandate and maintain their federal contracts. This applies to remote employees too.”

Unvaccinated professionals at other companies may lose their job.

“Cisco – Get a jab or loose [sic] your job!” said a verified Cisco professional in a discussion about Cisco’s workplace policy. “Now if you want your job, get the vaccine or else you will be laid off.”

According to Blind, many companies implemented policies that require unvaccinated professionals to get fully vaccinated by Dec. 8. The cohort includes AMD, Dell, GE, Google, Okta, Oracle, Visa, Yahoo and others.

“I think there should be flexibility… for people who are not vaccinated rather than just firing us,” said the Visa professional seeking employment at tech companies who have not implemented a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The bottom line

Some professionals disapprove of COVID-19 vaccine mandates and are looking for new jobs as a result. While the number of professionals remains fairly low, resignations may increase as early December and January deadlines loom, according to Blind.