New York, Feb 12 (IANS): Nearly 3,000 New York City employees could lose their jobs for failing to follow Covid-19 vaccine mandate.

New York City requires its employees, including teachers, firefighters, police officers, among others, to present proof of vaccination as of Friday, according to rules passed in 2021.

The vaccination rate among municipal workers in New York City stands at nearly 95 per cent as a number of exceptions were nodded in recent months on religious or medical basis, according to local media reports.

The workers on unpaid leave who opted against receiving city-provided health benefits since the city's vaccine mandate took effect on November 1, 2021, and workers hired after August 2, 2021, who haven't presented proof of a second vaccination dose will potentially be impacted by the deadline, according to a report by New York Daily News on Thursday.

New York City has nearly 370,000 municipal workers and the unions have negotiated with the city for extension or flexibility regarding the mandate, Xinhua news agency reported.

Protesters plan to rally against the mandate at City Hall on Friday in addition to similar protests in recent days.

"I want them to stay. I want them to be employees of the city, but they have to follow the rules that were put in place before my administration," said New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday.

Adams, who took office on January 1, 2022, said he would not do a disservice to those who follow the rules and would not set a bad precedent.

"We have to be very clear. People must be vaccinated if they are New York City

employees," Adams added.

Nearly 9,000 New York City workers were put on unpaid leave on November 1, 2021, for not following the Covid-19 vaccine mandate.