The decision ends a directive originally put in place in August 2021, as the Delta wave of the virus began to build.
Polarization over vaccines at that point drew thousands of protesters to the Capitol campus in Olympia. The vaccine requirement covered more than 60,000 state workers, and for the most part did not allow them to opt out by getting regular testing or working remotely.
Nearly 1,800 state workers – from Washington State Patrol troopers to state ferry employees and prison staff – left their jobs or were fired rather than take the vaccine. Conservatives criticized the vaccine requirement for causing staffing shortages to those and other government services.
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