Will Philadelphia Firefighters Continue to Fight the Vax Mandate?

Last week a three person arbitration panel voted against the Philadelphia Firefighters’ Union opposition to the City’s vaccine mandate for all city employees.  The president of the union representing firefighters and paramedics, IAFF Local 22, called the arbitration settlement “an abomination of law, a defiant rejection of simple logic and a miscarriage of justice”.

Union president Michael Bresnan call the Mayor’s vaccine mandate policy outdated.  Toronto this week dropped its municipal workers vaccine mandate and is allowing approximately 200 employees, who had been put on indefinite leave, to return to work.

The union leader attacked the Mayor for his “complete lack of understanding when it comes to protecting Philadelphians during the pandemic”.

Bresnan pointed out the tragic vaccine injury that befell one of the Fire Department’s elite Special Operations Command who became paralyzed after receiving the injection.  After months of hospitalization and now physical therapy Bresnan states that the City “cut him off completely and abandoned him”.

Philadelphia’s paramedics have had close contact with the vaccine injured and listen to the victims rather than gaslight them as the medical establishment feels it must do to protect the vaccine industry.

The arbitration panel voted two to one to force the Philadelphia Fire Department to vaccinate.  The only argument given was that it was what all the other city unions had decided and continuity is essential.  This directly ignored all the arguments the fire union presented.  Primarily that there is no science to back the City’s extraordinary medical demand.  Testimony provided by Admiral Brett P. Giroir, M.D. former Assistant Secretary for Health established that the vaccine mandate would not accomplish the City’s stated goal of reducing transmission of Covid19.

What the Union does next is critical.  The City is poised to put on leave and then fire the remaining 1,000 firefighters, paramedics and support staff who have so far refused the Covid19 shots.

Philadelphia has already seen its ambulance response times drop significantly during this current wave of gun violence which has paramedics working more like combat medics.  Furthermore, the City can not fill the current vacancies it has now.  Philadelphian’s hope logic and reason will prevail and that IAFF Local 22 solider on with their fight.