In its latest push to get more people inoculated against COVID-19, the Albany County Legislature is moving forward with a proposal that offers paid time-off so County employees can get the vaccine.

The resolution, which was approved Thursday by the Health and Personnel Committees, provides up to four hours of paid time-off for the purposes of receiving the COVID-19 vaccination. It will also be applied retroactively to employees who used time for the purpose of receiving the vaccine on or after December 1, 2020.

“Our County employees have played a pivotal role during COVID-19, many of them working on the front lines every day to help others. It’s our turn to help them by doing everything we can to ensure they receive the care they need to protect themselves, their families and carry on our County mission,” stated Legislator Raymond Joyce, Chairman of the Health Committee.

“As important as the vaccine is, and as important as the County Department of Health has been to our collective pandemic response, it is important that we make it as easy as possible for our employees to get vaccinated and have no barriers to doing so. We want to be a leader in creating safe workplaces,” stated Deputy Majority Leader Lynne Lekakis, who sponsored the resolution.

Members of the Personnel Committees also voiced their support before voting in favor of the resolution.

“I want to thank my colleagues on the Personnel Committee for moving this resolution forward. The health and safety of our County employees is critical and I am glad that we can offer them this benefit so they can get vaccinated,” said Deputy Majority Leader Gil Ethier, Chairman of the Personnel Committee.

“The Legislature has always made the health and safety of our employees a priority during the COVID-19 pandemic. As we continue to push for people to get vaccinated, we need to make it easier for them to do so without having to worry about loss of income,” Albany County Legislature Chairman Andrew Joyce said. “I commend my colleagues for their forward thinking approach to help our devoted County employees who want to get vaccinated.”

The resolution is expected to be voted on by the Legislature at the regular meeting on March 8, 2021.