- United Airlines' CEO Scott Kirby revealed six of its pilots were fired after not getting vaccinated.
- The company has a strict vaccine mandate, requiring staff to get the shot or be terminated, minus exemptions.
- Southwest Airlines and American Airlines do not plan to fire unvaccinated workers, according to their CEOs.
United Airlines' CEO Scott Kirby revealed that just six of its 13,000-strong pilot group did not get the vaccine and were fired by the company.
In a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Wednesday, Kirby said about 200 employees were terminated because they failed to get the COVID-19 vaccine, six of which were pilots, reported Reuters. Moreover, 80 pilots who received a medical or religious exemption were put on unpaid leave.
The firings represent less than 1% of the company's 67,000-employee workforce, with most employees choosing to get the shot before the September 27 deadline.
Kirby emphasized the reason behind the company's strict mandate was for the safety of employees and customers, saying "it saved lives."
United's policy was independent of the federal mandate issued by President Joe Biden that required federal contractors, including many US carriers, to be vaccinated without the option to test out.
In August, United was the first major US airline to implement an employee vaccination mandate, requiring workers to either get vaccinated or be terminated, minus approved medical or religious exemptions. At the Senate hearing, Kirby said the company granted about 2,000 exemptions, with 80% of religious requests being approved.
However, some workers pushed back on the mandate, with six employees filing a lawsuit against the company. The Plaintiffs claimed the requirements violated personal freedoms and failed to offer "reasonable accommodations" to staff who did not get inoculated.
"United's actions have left Plaintiffs with the impossible choice of either taking the COVID-19 vaccine, at the expense of their religious beliefs and their health, or losing their livelihood," according to the lawsuit.
According to CNBC, a US judge ruled in favor of United in November, saying the airline can continue to put unvaccinated employees with an approved exemption on unpaid leave. According to the carrier, staff can return to work once the airline deems it "safe" to do so, or they can take on a non-customer-facing role.
Despite the backlash, United has stood by its policy. A company spokesperson said in September that the vaccine requirement has helped with recruiting, and prospective employees are applying to the company specifically because of the mandate. Meanwhile, Kirby told CNN that only a "handful" of staff quit over the policy.
