TRENTON, NJ – New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy today announced his first step toward a statewide COVID-19 vaccination mandate for the private sector. Last week Murphy announced mandatory vaccinations for state workers.
Today he said, “All employees in healthcare facilities and other high-risk congregate settings must either be vaccinated or undergo regular testing.”
Full compliance is demanded by September 7th. Workers will need to be tested up to two times per week.
“To be clear, this standard is the absolute floor,” he said. “We are reviewing all available resources to review aggressive testing standards as quickly as possible in the state’s high risk settings. We retain the ability and authority to go further if we do not see significant increases in vaccination rates within this worker population.
The mandate by the governor this time extends into the private sector and Murphy says he supports employers terminating employees for non-compliance.
“I want to make perfectly clear that if we do not see significant increases in vaccination rates among the employees in these settings, we are ready and willing to force vaccinations as a condition with their employment,” Murphy said.