Texas-based American Airlines and Southwest Airlines said on Tuesday they would order their staff to get the Covid vaccine - in defiance of Governor Gregg Abbott's ban on vaccine mandates.
The airlines said they would comply with President Joe Biden's executive order which requires airline employees to be vaccinated by December 8.
Also on Tuesday, Chicago-based Boeing said that its employees must be vaccinated against COVID or face being. The policy will apply to roughly 125,000 U.S.-based employees company-wide, about 5,000 of them based in Texas.
The two Texas-based carriers, American and Southwest, said the federal mandate superseded an order issued on Monday by Republican Governor Greg Abbott barring COVID-19 vaccine mandates by any entity, including private employers.
Southwest said it 'would be expected to comply with the President's Order to remain compliant as a federal contractor.'
American Airlines said while it was reviewing Abbott's executive order, 'this does not change anything' for the company. The airline said Tuesday that they would require their employees to be fully vaccinated by December 8 in compliance with the Biden administration's vaccine mandate for all federal contractors, which they said supersedes Abbott's order
In his executive order, Texas Governor Greg Abbott (pictured) said the Biden administration was 'bullying' many private entities into imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates, causing workforce disruptions
American said while it was reviewing Abbott's executive order, 'this does not change anything' for the company.
The two Texas-based carriers have asked US-based employees to submit proof of vaccination by November 24.
'Compliance with these requirements is a condition of employment,' states a Boeing internal presentation from Tuesday, according to the Seattle Times.
'Employees who are unable to meet these requirements ... may be released from the company,' although they can request exemptions 'due to a disability or sincerely held religious belief.'
Any employee granted such an exemption will have to 'undergo frequent testing for COVID-19' and be ready to 'present a negative test result upon request.'
