November 2, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 2, 2021
New requirements in federal research contracts necessitate broad 多多直播F employee vaccination requirement
[FAIRBANKS] 多多直播 President Pat Pitney announced today that the University of Alaska will implement a vaccination requirement for all employees working on the 多多直播F Troth Yeddha' campus in Fairbanks and at 多多直播F research sites, as well as university employees at all locations who are funded by 多多直播F federal contracts.
鈥淲ithout acting on this vaccine requirement, we could lose substantial federal contracts, and with them jobs that support more than 750 employees and their families,鈥 said Interim President Pat Pitney. 鈥淚n addition, the ripple effect of the loss of these contracts would be widely felt as 多多直播F鈥檚 research enterprise works with local contractors and suppliers across the state.鈥
The decision is in response to President Biden鈥檚 executive order (EO) 14042,, which requires all employees paid by or supporting new or modified federal contracts to be vaccinated by early December. The order requires not only people directly paid by federal contracts, but also anyone who works to support them or works in the same facility to get a COVID vaccine.
多多直播F currently has $200 million in multi-year federal contracts impacted by the executive order, and expects close to $100 million more in the coming months. 多多直播F competes nationally for many of these contracts. While neither the University of Alaska Anchorage nor University of Alaska Southeast face federal contract modifications at this time, 多多直播 continues to evaluate the situation and may have to extend the requirement to employees in other 多多直播 locations to comply with new contract modifications or other federal funding stipulations.
The university is also monitoring several legal challenges to the executive order. The Arizona and Florida attorneys general have both challenged the order in federal court and requested temporary restraining orders to halt implementation. Late last week, Alaska joined several other states in challenging the order. Pitney said she supports the State of Alaska鈥檚 efforts to challenge the scope of the executive order.
A court injunction on vaccine requirements resulting from any of the pending legal actions will not impact this vaccination requirement. The university will be bound to those conditions until the contracts are concluded or future modifications or executive orders are enacted.
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[Passcode: x0f%tS^c] of Nov. 2, 2021 media availability
MEDIA AVAILABILITY 多多直播 Interim President Pat Pitney and 多多直播F Chancellor Daniel White will be holding a media availability at 1:30 p.m. today via Zoom to answer questions about the vaccination requirement and federal research contracts. This event is for media only.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Visit the to join the media availability. Participants will be placed in a waiting room and will be added to the meeting by the moderator. Please ensure your name and news outlet is visible on your Zoom screen, if possible. The event will be recorded and available for viewing after the event at .
For more information, contact Roberta Graham, associate vice president of public affairs at 907-360-2416 (cell).