BCPS Employees for Freedom said the vaccine mandate for public sector employees did not serve its purpose and was unnecessary after it was announced it would be scrapped. .“The vaccines were not effective, did not stop infection/transmission, and caused many harmful adverse reactions,” said BCPS Employees for Freedom in a tweet. .“The mandate sowed division, discrimination, and fear.”.British Columbia public servants were told March 10 they would no longer be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 effective Monday. .The BC Ministry of Finance said the decision to rescind the policy was based on a high level of vaccination among the public service, where more than 98% of workers have been immunized..The British Columbia Public Service (BCPS) said a total of 314 employees were terminated for non-compliance and about 175 workers were put on an unpaid leave under the policy..BCPS employees on an unpaid leave over the vaccine mandate were required to submit their intention to return to work by April 3 or be recognized as resigned. .The public service offered no back pay to suspended employees, did not reinstate the hundreds who were fired, or compensate the thousands more it forced into retirement. BCPS Employees for Freedom said this shows it felt the mandate was necessary and right and punishment justified. .It said in British Columbia there is “no recognition of the widespread harmful impacts and uselessness of the government's COVID-19 mandates, including the proof of vaccination mandate for public service employees.”.The lasting impacts are most evident in the public service. A video from a seminar on March 20 shows administrators reassuring supervisors of the safety of unvaccinated people returning to work..Supervisors made statements such as “Everyone wants a sense of control over the lives, over their bodies” and “No, we don't have the right to know someone's vaccination status” without irony or reflection. .The advocacy group went on to say politicians and bureaucrats who unleashed COVID-19 hysteria “created a debilitating groupthink and mob mentality in the BC Public Service.” It added many employees are struggling with anxiety, and the divisions and resentments will likely last long into the future. .BCPS Employees for Freedom concluded by saying the people responsible for causing the harm have faced no accountability. It said it will continue to draw attention to these abuses. .“Truth and justice will prevail,” it said.
