On Wednesday, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby sounded off on the firing of almost 600 employees for not complying with the company’s vaccine mandate.
Kirby told CNBCs’ “Squawk on the Street” that he feels “bad for the 593 people” who were forced out of their jobs, but he noted that number was only 1% of his employees.
“[L]ook, I’m really proud and gratified that the United team, excluding the people who have applied for religious or medical accommodations. Over 99% got vaccinated,” Kirby touted. “It proves that vaccine mandates do work and that you can get a huge percentage of your workforce vaccinated. You know, I wish it could have been 100%, but it was never going to be 100 percent, but I think 99% we feel really good about. You know, I feel bad for the 593 people, that less than 1% that are going to leave, but we’re focused on doing the right thing for United Airlines. And it’s great to have this in the rearview mirror for us and the ability to just move forward now.”
“[W]e planned and prepared for this that we’re now able to confidently run a strong operation,” he added. “At United Airlines, there’s no worry at all because we’ll have everyone already vaccinated. And this really is just great.”
Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent
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