On Oct 5, 2021, at 5:17 PM, Lyn Bartram <lyn@sfu.ca> wrote:
I believe that Biology stated that people had to be vaccinated to be in any space controlled by the department.
… it was wearing masks in space controlled by the department.
(no way to control vaccination status)
We did have signs printed (on plain paper) saying: “don’t enter this room, if you are not vaccinated”
Harald
I fully concur with Ellen that SFU is delinquent in health and safety measures. It's appalling. And they reneged on the pledge to do rapid testing and mandatory disclosure. I hear they are also refusing applications for people to work remotely, where age (65+) is not considered a vulnerability condition, quite in contradiction to public health policies.
I think we really may need to consider something stronger than annoyed emails, as clearly there is no attention or credence being given to valid concerns.SFU i currently says that rapid testing will be made available to "those invited to participate". As vaccination disclosure is NOT necessary, how do they decide whom to invite???
Consider, in contrast, UBC. https://rapidtesting.covid19.ubc.ca/
From: Ellen Balka <ellenb@sfu.ca>
Sent: October 5, 2021 5:06:57 PM
To: Lucas Herrenbrueck
Cc: academic-discussion@sfu.ca
Subject: Re: Western University's Mandatory COVID-19 Proof of VaccinationGreetings all-After receiving an email about whether or not I’d be attending a dept meeting in person or via zoom I indicated that I’d like to know that others in the room were fully vaccinated before committing to meeting in person.
Our acting chair indicated his support for that and also indicated that there seems to be a significant gap re: safety and risk services and accountability measures, such as addressing rapid testing for the unvaccinated.
Is anyone aware of departments at SFU that have made proof of vaccination a requirement for attending meetings in person? If so, how was the proof gathered?
Any thoughts?
Apologies for brevity- sent from my phone. -Ellen.Yo,
I just got this from UWO (where I have an adjunct appointment but hadn't gotten the original message at the bottom). It's good to see some institutions of higher learning are taking proof of vaccination seriously.
All that boldface definitely helps get the urgency of the message across -- as does the Soprano style "serious implications ... which we would definitely prefer to avoid" 😂
Any insight into how SFU is handling this nowadays?
From: Margaret McGlynn <vpappf@uwo.ca>
Sent: October 5, 2021 12:27
Cc: Nicholas Harney; Ella Forbes-Chilibeck
Subject: URGENT: Western University's Mandatory COVID-19 Proof of Vaccination_Faculty of Social ScienceDear Faculty Members,
If you are receiving this email, it is because our records show you have an Adjunct Appointment with Western University. We are wanting to gently remind you again that Western has a Mandatory Covid-19 Vaccination policy in place and as of September 30, 2021 we don’t appear to have a record that your proof of vaccination has been uploaded in our system.
I appreciate that the previous notifications were sent to your UWO email address; it is possible that email address may not be activated, or you don’t check that regularly or our email may simply have been caught in a spam trap. On September 10th, the email (see below) was sent to your UWO email address. That email has the information that you will need to complete this requirement and should answer any questions you might have.
Your response is required. If you could please turn your mind to uploading your proof of vaccination at your earliest convenience, that will dramatically lessen the likelihood of having to receive more of these types of reminders. There are serious implications if you have not uploaded your vaccination documentation by October 12, 2021, which we would definitely prefer to avoid. Your continued Appointment at Western is important to us.
It is possible that you may have already complied with this requirement and you are receiving this email in error. Your response will allow us to update your records.
Talk soon. Take care.
Ella Forbes-ChilibeckDirector, Office of Faculty Relations
On 2021-09-10 5:29 p.m., Margaret McGlynn wrote:This is a gentle reminder that Mandatory COVID-19 Proof of Vaccination Status is required by Western University. If you are receiving this email, it means that Western’s records indicate that you have not uploaded your proof of vaccination status yet. This email is intended to help you understand how to submit your proof of vaccination to Western and how important it is that you do so as soon as possible.
All members of the community, including you because you hold an Appointment at Western, were required to upload proof of vaccination byTuesday, September 7. You have until October 12 to submit proof of full vaccination and will be required to be tested for COVID-19 every 72 hours in the interim if you are working for Western, with results submitted to the University. Currently, the requirement is that you submit your proof of full vaccination to Western only once. If you received your vaccinations in Ontario, you can download your vaccination receipts at Ontario Health website.
It is appreciated that some of you have had to submit verifications to hospitals, clinics and our other Western partners. However, the Western system cannot currently be linked with those partners so we are all required to submit that information directly to Western at this time.
If you have questions, information about the COVID-19 vaccine is available: COVID-19: Effectiveness and Benefits of Vaccination module. When finished, please complete the Confirmation found on the left-hand menu in OWL.
How do I upload my verification?You should have received a proof of vaccination verification invitation by email. You will need that email as it contains a “unique email submission link” which is required to upload your verification. To help you to locate that email; the subject line was Action Required: Mandatory COVID-19 Proof of Vaccination Status and it was sent to your Western email from noreply@survey.uwo.ca on or about August 26, 2021.
What do I do if I cannot find my unique email submission link?If you have trouble finding the August 26, 2021 email, please contact Human Resources, Western University at takecare@uwo.ca.
What if I can’t get vaccinated?All full- and part-time faculty, clinical academics, librarians and archivists (as well as all staff) are required to comply with the Western vaccination policy, unless they have an approved accommodation. If you believe your unique circumstances may entitle you to an exemption from vaccination, please contact the Office of Faculty Relations seeking accommodation under the Ontario Human Rights Act. Information for requesting an accommodation is available here. You can reach the Office of Faculty Relations regarding your accommodation request by emailing Faculty Relations Consultant, Dirk Volschenk, at dvolsche@uwo.ca.
What if I refuse to be vaccinated?All full- and part-time faculty, clinical academics, librarians and archivists (as well as all staff) are required to comply with the Western vaccination policy. If you fail or refuse to upload your vaccination confirmation and do not have an accommodation on the basis of a protected ground under the Ontario Human Rights Act you will be suspended with pay pending confirmation of your noncompliance and, if confirmed, suspended without pay. Falsified vaccination documentation will result in immediate termination for cause.
Will my records remain confidential?If you have any concerns related to data security or privacy, please contact Western's Privacy Officer at privacy.office@uwo.ca.
We require you to respond directly to this email by no later than September 15th to allow Western to confirm where you are in the vaccination compliance process. It is possible that you may have already complied with this requirement and you are receiving this email in error. Your response will allow us to update your records.
Many thanks for your efforts as together we will make our environment safer for all.
Margaret McGlynn (she/her)Vice Provost (Academic Planning, Policy and Faculty)Professor, Department of HistoryWestern UniversityInternational and Graduate Affairs Building, 0N 50London, ON, CanadaN6A 5B7