More than 100 Chicago Fire Department employees, other city workers sue over vaccine mandate
CHICAGO - More than 100 city workers, with the majority being employees of the Chicago Fire Department, are suing the city and state claiming the vaccination mandates they've been ordered to follow are unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday in federal court in Chicago.
The suit challenges an executive order signed by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker in early September requiring healthcare workers and certain state employees to be fully vaccinated.
Along with fire department employees, the plaintiffs in the suit include workers at the Water and Transportation departments.
In addition, the lawsuit challenges Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s vaccine mandate, which required city employees to report their vaccination status by Oct. 15.
Lightfoot is already in a court battle with the Chicago police union over the mandate.
The lawsuit filed Thursday claims the power to issue a vaccine mandate does not fall to Gov. Pritzker and Mayor Lightfoot, thereby rendering the mandate "null and void."
The city of Chicago released a statement, saying: "The Department of Law will review the lawsuit upon service and does not comment on pending litigation."
The governor's office has yet to comment on the pending litigation.