Reuters is reporting on an interesting dynamic within the vaccine mandate as it pertains to Amtrak. Reading between the lines tells us something very specific about this vaccine mandate that we have discussed here, and it’s starting to show.
The article itself points to how Amtrak is suspending their vaccine mandate as a result of the federal courts blocking enforcement of any mandate pending litigation. From their perspective as a federal contractor, Amtrak is now in a position to cease the vaccine requirement until the legal issues are resolved. However, there’s an element touched upon that needs to be considered.
First the article (the emphasis is mine):
WASHINGTON, Dec 14 (Reuters) – U.S. passenger railroad Amtrak said on Tuesday it will temporarily suspend a vaccine mandate for employees and now no longer expects to be forced to cut some service in January. In a memo seen by Reuters, Amtrak Chief Executive Bill Flynn said the railroad would allow employees who were not vaccinated to get tested.
Currently, fewer than 500 active Amtrak employees are not in compliance. Last week, the railroad told Congress it anticipated “proactively needing to temporarily reduce some train frequencies across our network” because of the mandate.
Flynn said 95.7% of Amtrak’s 17,000 employees are either fully vaccinated or have an accommodation — and including employees with one dose 97.3% of employees are in compliance.



