Citigroup Inc. will require all U.S. employees be vaccinated against Covid-19 as a condition of their employment, citing President Joe Biden’s directive to federal contractors.
The Wall Street giant asked staffers to submit proof of vaccination by Dec. 8, and said those who comply will receive $200 as a “thank you,” according to a memo to staff Thursday seen by Bloomberg News. Citigroup set Jan. 14 as the final cut-off for workers to upload vaccine cards, to give unvaccinated staff more time to get shots.
“Our medical teams have consulted with top experts at some of the most prestigious medical institutions in the country, and are confident about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines available to us,” Sara Wechter, who leads human resources at New York-based Citigroup, said in the memo. “They have advised us that a fully-vaccinated workplace is one of the most important things we can do to keep colleagues healthy when they are on-site.”
U.S. banks have been grappling with vaccine mandates and testing policies as they slowly bring staff back into their facilities. While other major lenders have required vaccines for new recruits or those returning to offices, Citigroup will become the first major Wall Street bank to make the vaccine a condition of employment.
Citigroup told employees in August that anyone returning to offices in the New York area and other major U.S. cities would have to be vaccinated. The new policy expands that requirement to all of the bank’s U.S. workforce of approximately 65,000.