CORNWALL, Ontario – Cornwall Police Service (CPS) Chief Shawna Spowart told the Police Services Board at a meeting on Thursday, Sept. 9 that she was in the process of forming a vaccination policy for CPS employees.
“This is probably the issue that has taken up the most of my attention over the past few weeks,” she said. “We continue to monitor the situation very closely and we are strongly considering a mandatory vaccination policy or one that allows for unvaccinated employees to be tested regularly.”
Spowart said that she hoped to have a policy in place by Oct. 1.
“We have to consider the impacts on our community partners including those in the healthcare sectors,” she said.
Spowart added that the CPS already had a high rate of vaccination amongst employees with 94.6 per cent of staff members already fully vaccinated and she said that she hoped that that number would grow after the Ontario government’s vaccine passport system goes into effect on Sept. 22.
“I have been included with discussions with the city about this policy and we are working together on this unprecedented and ever evolving issue,” Spowart added.
Cornwall Mayor Glen Grant said that he wished the province would take the lead on vaccination policies for municipalities and municipal organizations.
“My personal belief is that the province needs to come out with something,” he said.
