A district in Fresno County will not require Covid-19 testing of teachers

Sierra Unified School District, in Fresno County, decided not to discipline employees who choose not to take a Covid-19 test, despite a policy requiring testing or vaccination.

According to the Fresno Bee, the district faced major opposition to its policy to require everyone on school campuses to wear masks and teachers to either show proof of a vaccine by Oct. 15 or take a weekly Covid-19 test. In the end, the school board voted 4-3 to follow these health directives, but also voted to suspend disciplinary action for those who choose not to test, “until a ‘non-invasive’ method is available to the district, such as saliva testing.”

Some employees said the test was painful, and others said they thought the questions on the form to sign up, which included asking if the employee identifies as male, female, or non-binary gender, were suspicious.