Cicero Adopts New COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Policy for All Town Employees
The Town Hall of Cicero is a building where it connects to a community center, a clinic, the police department and where the Town board meetings are held (Photo by April Alonso)
By Michael Izquierdo
The Town of Cicero adopted a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination and testing policy for all public employees at the town board meeting held on October 26.
The new policy, obtained by Cicero Independiente via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, says that all town employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or agree to voluntarily receive weekly COVID-19 testing on their own time by December 6.
Town employees who choose to remain unvaccinated due to an approved accommodation for medical or religious reasons must still undergo weekly testing to be in compliance with the policy.
"Exemptions for religious reasons, or other medical reasons will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis with the Human Resources Department,” explained the town spokesperson via email.
This policy applies to all part-time, full-time and seasonal workers for the town.
The policy also applies to “volunteers, interns, consultants, contract personnel, independent contractors, personnel of independent contractors and vendors, personnel employed by temporary agencies and/or other governmental agencies, and any other person(s) or firm(s) doing business for or with the Town.”
Individuals must inform the Human Resources Department by November 8 whether they are or will be vaccinated or choose to undergo mandatory weekly testings on their own time.
All town employees that fail to report or follow this ordinance may be subject to discipline, with risk of termination of employment.
This new ordinance comes after the Town of Cicero issued a public statement praising their response to COVID-19. The statement was issued after Cicero Independiente published an investigation showing the town spent COVID relief funds on the regular salaries of 23 police officers.
According to the statement, 52 police officers and 21 firefighters contracted COVID-19. The statement addresses the amount of police, firefighter, paramedic and other Health Department personnel they hired since 2020, their PPE distribution efforts to the public and funding received to promote the Town's vaccination program.
“The Town of Cicero’s vaccination program has resulted in 42.5 percent of the population (38,189 people) receiving both vaccinations, and 60.4 percent (50,650 people) receiving at least one vaccination,” reads the statement.
However, community leaders in Cicero and Berwyn have been vocal about where their town's efforts fell short. Cicero Independiente reported these concerns over the summer, from community leaders stepping up to address vaccination disparities to Cicero activists launching a survey for residents and stakeholders to get public comment on how the town spent their COVID Relief Aid on the police.
Cicero Independiente reached out to Cicero spokesperson Ray Hanania for comment on how many public employees in Cicero reported their vaccination status.
Hanania did not have this information in time for publication.
In Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot issued a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the city employees earlier this year.
This week, a Cook County judge temporarily paused the mandate, according to an article published by Block Club Chicago.
Unless they received exemption, Lightfoot's mandate required that all city workers, including officers, be fully vaccinated by December 31. Those who didn't comply with the mandate could face punishment, with a risk of being fired.
Cicero Independiente filed a Freedom of Information Act request in August asking for information on the number of employees who were vaccinated. Information was not available at the time and, in September, the town spokesperson did not respond to questions whether a vaccination mandate would be issued.
For now, Cicero and Berwyn residents that are looking to receive a free COVID-19 test can refer to this article for updated locations. COVID-19 booster shots can now be scheduled at the Cicero Health Department online here using the codes modernab1101 or pfizerb1101.
Michael Izquierdo is a local freelance journalist and a contributing reporter for Cicero Independiente.
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