Detroit Regional Chamber > Business Resources > COVID-19 > Rocket Will Require Unvaccinated Workers to Be Tested, Wear Masks

Rocket Will Require Unvaccinated Workers to Be Tested, Wear Masks

August 5, 2021
The Detroit News
Breana Noble
Aug. 4, 2021

Rocket Companies Inc. will require unvaccinated employees to wear masks in the office and get tested weekly, the mortgage giant said Wednesday.

COVID-19 cases nationwide are on the rise as the more contagious delta variant spreads. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending even vaccinated people wear masks when in public indoors to protect from the variant strain in areas with “substantial” or “high” transmission.

Wayne County, the home of Detroit-based Rocket, isn’t there. It has “moderate” transmission with cases up 42%, and the positivity rate is up 1.2% over the past seven days, according to the CDC. Rocket will require its U.S. employees to attest to their vaccine status starting Aug. 23.

“Those who have not yet been fully vaccinated, or are not two weeks past their final shot, will be required to complete weekly COVID tests and immediately begin wearing masks when moving about the office,” Rocket spokesman Aaron Emerson said in a statement. “As the Delta COVID variant continues to spread, we will remain vigilant and take every action we deem necessary to protect our people and our hometowns.”

Rocket will provide testing kits to employees who need them.

The company, which includes Rocket Mortgage, title insurer Amrock and other affiliates, has 26,000 employees, including 19,000 in Detroit. It began returning employees in phases in June and is continuing throughout the summer. Most are working two to three days in the office weekly with teams staggering their schedules throughout the week.

Detroit’s three automakers on Wednesday also reinstituted a mask mandate for all workers, no matter their vaccine status, in plants, offices, and warehouses.

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