The Toronto Police Service (TPS) says it will end its COVID-19 vaccination mandates for all members as of June 21. .The about-face will allow 101 unvaccinated employees currently on unpaid leave of absence to return to work. ."Officers will be deployed as operationally required by the service and civilian members will return to their original roles," police said in a statement..TPS spokesperson Const. Alex Li said the decision to lift the mandatory vaccine policy was “in response to the current public health and occupational health context of the pandemic and the unique nature of its work and workplaces.”.“As the pandemic has evolved, the service has continued to evaluate its approach in light of these factors and the specific occupational health context for our workplaces,” said Li. .The mandatory vaccine policy was announced in August 2021 and led to 205 members, both uniformed officers (117) and civilian employees (88) being placed on indefinite leave..According to TPS, 99% of its members are reported to be fully vaccinated and all new hires are required to receive the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of employment. .“The service continues to ensure that our workplaces remain safe, which includes continued COVID-19 measures as appropriate,” said Li. .Ontario is also set to drop the provincial masking requirements for public transit, hospitals and other healthcare settings including long-term care and retirement homes as of June 11. .As of Wednesday, all of Canada's biggest banks, including TD Bank, CIBC, RBC, Scotiabank and BMO, lifted their mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policies for employees over the past month and-a-half. Employees, whether vaccinated or not, are now permitted to return to work on site and no longer need to submit to rapid testing..On Monday, a motion brought forward in the House of Commons by Conservative MP Melissa Lantsman to end COVID-19 travel restrictions was voted down by the Liberals, NDP, Bloc Québécois and the Green Party with 202 votes compared to the Conservatives' 117.
