U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a letter to the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery, Brian D. Miller, and acting Inspector General Richard K. Delmar urging an investigation into the widespread layoffs of airline workers who declined to submit themselves to President Biden’s vaccine mandate and the potential misuse of CARES Act funds by airlines.
Senator Hawley writes, “The Congress provided unprecedented funds to airlines and other companies during the COVID-19 pandemic, on the condition that they did not lay off their employees. Yet according to recent reports, some airlines have been laying off employees who decline to submit themselves to President Biden’s vaccine mandate. This has led to many employees losing their jobs… I now write to call on you to immediately open a complete investigation into the widespread layoffs by major airline companies and legal review of whether these companies violated the terms of their loans.”
In addition to the investigation into funding misuses, Senator Hawley is demanding answers on which airlines took adverse actions against unvaccinated employees and if any airlines delayed or cancelled flights as a result of employee vaccination-related issues.
In May of 2020, Senator Hawley wrote a letter to United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz demanding the company reverse their decision to cut 15,000 employees’ hours or return the generous taxpayer-funded bailout it received from the CARES Act.
Read the full letter here or below.
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Brian D. Miller
Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20220
Richard K. Delmar
Acting Inspector General
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20220
Dear Inspector General Miller and Acting Inspector General Delmar,
The Congress provided unprecedented funds to airlines and other companies during the COVID-19 pandemic, on the condition that they did not lay off their employees. Yet according to recent reports, some airlines have been laying off employees who decline to submit themselves to President Biden’s vaccine mandate. This has led to many employees losing their jobs.
Under the CARES Act, your offices have jurisdiction to audit and investigate loans from the Department of the Treasury to these airline companies. I appreciate your inclusion of these loans in your reports to Congress so far.
I now write to call on you to immediately open a complete investigation into the widespread layoffs by major airline companies and legal review of whether these companies violated the terms of their loans. This review is especially timely as a federal court recently issued a temporary restraining order against United Airlines from implementing its mandatory vaccine policy.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that I have expressed my concern with airlines’ receipt of pandemic funds. In May 2020, I wrote to United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz about reports that he was cutting pay for workers after receiving CARES Act funds. I continue to believe that decision should be subject to renewed scrutiny for compliance with the CARES Act.
So that Congress can consider remedial legislation, I also request the following information by November 15, 2021:
Which airlines took adverse actions against employees who failed to submit to President Biden’s vaccine mandate?
Have any of these airlines delayed or canceled flights as a result of their failure to accommodate employees’ applications for medical or religious exemptions from the COVID-19 vaccine?
Did any of these airlines violate the terms of their loans under the CARES Act, and if so, what steps were taken to recover these funds?
What additional jurisdiction or appropriations do you need to fulfill your mission?
Sincerely,
Josh Hawley
U.S. Senator
CC: Janet Yellen, Secretary of the Treasury