California School Custodians Must Receive COVID-19 Vaccines

California became the first U.S. state to require all school staff, including custodians and teachers, to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly virus testing, National Public Radio reports. California Gov. Gavin Newsome announced the mandate last Wednesday, as schools return from summer break amid concerns about the highly contagious delta variant.

The policy goes into effect Oct. 15, giving schools time to verify vaccination status and have weekly testing for unvaccinated staff in place. It affects the state’s 320,000 public school teachers, more than 250,000 support staff—from cafeteria employees to cleaners—and at least 80,000 private school employees. The policy will also apply to school volunteers.

Several large school districts in the state have recently issued similar vaccine requirements, including San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, and the Long Beach Unified.