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The Walt Disney Company and even Broadway have now joined the ranks of other large corporations, such as Walmart, Facebook, Google, and others in asking staff to get immunized against COVID-19.
In a statement issued Friday, Disney stated that all salaried and non-union hourly employees in the United States who work on-site will be required to be completely vaccinated. Employees who have not yet been vaccinated will have 60 days to do so, and those who are still working from home will be required to produce proof of immunization before returning. Disney stated that it was considering vaccine requirements with the workers union and that all new hires would be expected to be fully vaccinated before beginning employment at the corporation.
The owners and operators of Broadway’s theaters also announced on Friday that theatergoers will be required to be vaccinated against the coronavirus and to wear masks while attending shows. “The policy, announced only days before the first Broadway play in more than 16 months begins performances,” the New York Times reports, “allows youngsters ineligible for vaccination to attend acts if screened for the virus.” According to the report, “the Metropolitan Opera, which hopes to reopen in late September, and Carnegie Hall, which is planning to reopen in October, are not only planning to require vaccinations, but also to bar children under 12 who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated.”
While Disney has made no such similar announcements regarding guests and children (how could they?), the moves of both entertainment epicenters coincide with the Center for Disease Control reversing their mask guidelines, citing fresh evidence of the “delta variant’s” reported propensity to spread among vaccinated persons. New cases and hospitalizations have risen slightly in Florida, while hospitalizations and deaths have not, but Disney said earlier in the week that visitors to its theme parks in the United States would once again be required to wear masks indoors.
The Broadway rules will be in place until at least October and require audiences to wear masks except when they are eating and drinking, because a deadly virus can tell if you’re eating or drinking, and won’t bother you then.
I can’t wait for all the butthurt tourists from prolifically anti-vax regions who bought tickets to Chicago and Phantom to catch wind of this. https://t.co/9MRGuGHOMF
— anna 🌈 (@atsymbolanna) July 30, 2021
“The Broadway vaccination mandate will apply not only to audiences, but also to performers, backstage crew and theater staff. There will be limited exceptions: ‘people with a medical condition or closely held religious belief that prevents vaccination,’ as well as children under 12, can attend with proof of a recent negative coronavirus test,” the Times reported.
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