New York City Mayor Eric Adams last Thursday as he announced...

New York City Mayor Eric Adams last Thursday as he announced a COVID-19 vaccine exemption for performers and professional athletes. Credit: Howard Schnapp

Mayor Eric Adams said Friday there was “no double standard” in his decision to carve out a COVID-vaccine-mandate exception for performers and professional athletes, though he said those who believe the policy was unjust could sue.

Speaking Friday in Brooklyn at an unrelated event, Adams faced questions about what he had announced a day earlier at Citi Field in Queens — that a mandate that went into effect for all private employers in New York City requiring workers be fully vaccinated now won’t apply to performers and athletes.

Nearly every other worker in the city must be vaccinated or face termination.

“You may consider it as a double standard. I consider it an analysis that I made, and I’m comfortable with my decision,” he said.

Adams has said the exception was granted to boost the struggling economy and as a matter of fairness: the language of the original mandate, which went into effect for the private sector Dec. 27 under Adams’ predecessor, Bill de Blasio, had a carve-out for visiting performers and athletes who are unvaccinated; thus, Adams explained Thursday, hometown performers and athletes had been at a competitive disadvantage when playing or performing locally.

Labor unions have said the exception strengthens their legal cases challenging the entire mandate, which also applies to the public sector.

About 1,500 municipal workers who refused to get vaccinated were fired in February — and those whose applications for exceptions are pending could be fired.

Asked about litigation by those fired, Adams said: “That’s the beauty of our system of justice. If people believe that they were unfairly treated, they have an opportunity to go to our court system. Those are the laws of our land. And I welcome the court system. I sued people before.”

On Thursday, Adams had denied being lobbied, saying at Citi Field, "I was not lobbied." That is contradicted by lobbying filings.
Then, on Friday, asked who had lobbied him on the decision to carve out the exception, Adams said he spoke with Corey Johnson, the former City Council speaker, who is now a lobbyist working on behalf of the Nets basketball team, being paid $18,000 a month, plus expenses. One of the Nets star players, Kyrie Irving, has refused to get vaccinated and hasn’t been able to play in home games.

“Corey reached out, clearly stating he was speaking on behalf of the Nets when he reached out,” Adams said. “I received calls from people who were against and for. That happens in the city. I said, ‘Corey, like any other person, I’m going based on what my doctors are stating.’ ”

Johnson didn't respond to a direct message sent to him via Twitter.

Adams added: “8.8 million people, 35 million opinions.”

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