Published on Dec. 2, 2021

Updated on April 13, 2023

Dear campus community,

Earlier this month, the University of Missouri Board of Curators approved a resolution that the UM System would comply with Executive Order 14042, the federal vaccine mandate for federal contractors.

Under the order, all UM System employees, which includes faculty, staff and student employees whether they work in person or remotely, must comply with the requirements of the federal vaccine mandate with exceptions for those who object because of a religious belief, a verified medical reason or based on the nature of their work. The mandate does not apply to volunteers or students who do not work for the university.

As the federal mandate is being contested in the courts, this is a fluid situation. All or part of the mandate for UM System employees could be adjusted or rescinded due to changes in federal rules or court actions. We will continue to update you if there are any changes to this policy.

Documenting your vaccination

If you are faculty, staff or a student employee and have not already done so, please upload an image of your COVID-19 vaccination record through myHR. The university also has used other systems for upload, such as myZou or ReadySet (for health care employees). MU Health Care will continue to follow a previous vaccination policy approved by the Board of Curators earlier this year. If you have already uploaded your document previously, you do not need to upload it again.

Alternatively, if you do not wish to directly upload your COVID-19 vaccination record, you may show your record to the Office of Human Resources in Jesse Hall to receive a signed verification certificate. You must then upload your certificate through myHR. The deadline for submission is Jan. 18.

Requesting an exemption

Exemptions will be given to employees who decline vaccination due to sincerely held religious beliefs or a verified medical reason.

Exemptions may also be given to employees that the university confirms will have no interaction with employees who work in connection with federal contracts, including no possibility of contact in parking garages, elevators or other common areas.

To request an exemption, log in to myHR. The ‘COVID Upload’ webpage has a section titled ‘Request COVID Exemption’ on the left panel. Employees will be notified via email if they are approved for the exemption. The deadline for submission is Jan. 18.

Attend training to learn more

To learn more about the vaccine mandate and the process to request exemptions, leaders, human resource professionals and fiscal officers will be invited to attend training in early December. Faculty, staff and student employees are encouraged to attend webinars provided by the UM System the week of Dec. 13 to learn more. Registration links are available on Percipio. A recording of the employee webinar will be available in Percipio for later viewing.

A copy of the full policy is available here, as well as a Q&A with answers to some common questions.

Compliance

Employees who do not comply with this policy will be subject to counseling and education, followed by verbal and written warnings. Continued noncompliance may result in termination.

It is important to communicate with your supervisor and/or campus HR to work through concerns or explore possible solutions, as the university wishes to work with our employees through this process and avoid unnecessary departures.

Upcoming vaccination opportunities

We encourage all members of our university community who are able to get vaccinated to do so, and Boone County has several vaccination sites. To find the nearest vaccination location to you, visit vaccines.gov.

Also, MU is hosting two walk-up vaccination events for all Mizzou employees, including: Dec. 3 from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Student Center; and Dec. 10, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. in Stotler Lounge at Memorial Union North. More vaccination information can be found on the Show Me Renewal website.

Thank you for your continued efforts to keep our campus community safe.

Mark Diedrich
Incident Commander
MU Incident Command Team

John Middleton
Operations Section Chief
MU Incident Command Team