New York Mandate Podcast, Ep. 14: School Therapist Janine

“I loved working with the kids. I loved helping them. I loved seeing them grow and develop and become mentally stronger and emotionally stronger and socially better. . . . It was a very good job. I loved it. I didn't want to leave. . . . And what broke my heart was that I was the only therapist—social worker—there. So when I was let go, there was no one else to help the kids. And I know for a long time, that at least six, seven months, if not more, they didn't have anyone.” - Janine

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In this episode of the New York Mandate podcast, I talk with Janine, who worked as a therapist at a preschool for children with disabilities. As a healthcare worker and someone working in a school in New York City, she fell under more than one COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

She tried to apply for a religious exemption, but was told that exemptions were not being accepted. Janine was fired for failing to comply with the mandate in September 2021 and is currently a plaintiff in a lawsuit.

Janine talked with me about her religious objections to the vaccine mandate as a Wiccan, why she’s looking for a way to move away from her home state of New York, and how vaccine mandates have changed everyday life for her and her two children.

We also talked about how the response to the pandemic led her to lose trust in public officials, why as a former moderate Democrat she feels more aligned with conservatives now, and why she puts her hopes in local, grassroots politics.

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Here are some links related to things we talked about during the episode:

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionThe EEOC enforces federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or employee because of the person's race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, transgender status, and sexual orientation), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information.

Public Health and Medical Professionals for TransparencyThis organization submitted a Freedom of Information Act Request to the FDA for all of the data in Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine biological product file, then sued the FDA for not releasing the data. As a result, Pfizer documents were released, and are available on the organization’s website.

Erin BrockovichThis is the website of consumer advocate Erin Brockovich. Janine mentioned the movie about her in our conversation. You can watch it on Amazon or YouTube. Here’s the scene Janine talked about.

Governor Cuomo Announces COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate for Healthcare WorkersThis is the August 2021 announcement of the New York State vaccine mandate for healthcare workers. While the mandate initially allowed religious exemptions, they were removed as an option soon after it was announced.

Order of the Commissioner of Health and Mental Hygiene to Require COVID-19 Vaccination in the WorkplaceThis is the order that former Health Commissioner Dave Chokshi issued on December 13, 2021 requiring all workers in New York City who work in a workplace or interact with other workers or the public to be vaccinated.

NYC Vaccination Requirement: WorkplacesThis is where you can find current information on New York City’s workplace vaccination requirements.

About the New York Mandate Podcast

The New York Mandate Podcast is an ongoing series of conversations exploring the costs and consequences of vaccine mandates in New York City. I’ll be talking with workers who have been directly affected by the mandates, as well as legal and policy experts.

In late 2021, the city introduced a series of requirements for workers to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. These requirements were put in place through executive orders issued by the administration of former mayor Bill de Blasio.

Current mayor Eric Adams continues to support the mandates, and they now extend to most working people in the city of New York. Private sector employers are required to affirm that their employees have been vaccinated, and public sector employees of city agencies have been terminated or put on unpaid leave for failing to comply with the vaccine requirement.

The views expressed in the New York Mandate podcast are the personal opinions of the people speaking, and are not intended to provide medical or legal advice.

Join the Conversation

Have you lost your job, been put on leave, or lost opportunities to work as an independent contractor as a result of your decision not to comply with a New York vaccine mandate? Did you take a vaccine against your wishes in order to keep your job? Please get in touch with me at [email protected].