Wisconsin DOA announces state employee testing requirement for the unvaccinated

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The Wisconsin Department of Administration (DOA) announced a new weekly testing requirement for all executive branch employees, interns, and contractors on Tuesday, Sept. 14.

The testing requirement will be effective Oct. 18, and applies to all employees who have either not submitted their vaccination status or reported their status as not fully vaccinated.

DOA said vaccinations for Wisconsin state employees continues to be a top priority, along with existing requirements around testing and wearing masks. Officials say nearly 70% of all executive branch employees have self-reported to be partially vaccinated as of Sept. 10.

“As part of our efforts to manage the state workforce, we’re looking to every tool at our disposal to address the Delta variant, including testing, wearing masks, and vaccination,” said DOA Secretary Joel Brennan. “State employees are critical partners in helping us protect the people of Wisconsin, and we look forward to the day when we can all put COVID-19 in the rear view mirror.”

Officials say DOA is keeping in place previous requirements for self-reporting vaccination status and wearing masks in state facilities for executive branch employees. DOA will also be expanding testing capabilities in the state workforce in order to provide a safe workplace for more than 30,000 executive branch employees.

A copy of the guidance shared with all executive branch employees on Tuesday is available here.