Military Vaccine Mandate under Review

Unvaccinated public servants were allowed back to work on June 20, including civilians of the Department of National Defence (DND), but unvaccinated Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) personnel will have to wait for their employer’s review of the vaccine mandate to know their fate.“Given updated guidance from the Treasury Board, we are currently reviewing the CDS [Chief of Defence Staff] Directives on COVID-19 Vaccination, in order to maintain a safe working environment and while remaining ready to conduct CAF operations in support of Canadians at home and around the world,” DND said in an emailed statement on June 22.
“In the meantime, the CDS Directives remain in effect for CAF members until further notice.”
The CDS directive, which was issued in October, allowed for exemptions under medical, religious, or human rights grounds, but not many have been granted.
Out of 1,300 exemption requests, DND says that as of May 31 only 157 were granted, with 98 for religious reasons, 42 for medical reasons, and 17 for “other reasons” (w …