Slightly over 1% of the Philadelphia's 22,000 unionized workers have been placed on leave for failing to comply with the city's vaccine mandate. The rate is much higher in some city units — 5.4% in the prisons department, and nearly 4% in the fire department — and 12% of all unionized workers received or requested an exemption on medical or religious grounds. Employees may be fired after the 30-day "U-Vax leave" if they remain unvaccinated or are not granted an exemption.