Goldman Sachs is making US employees report their vaccination status ahead of return to offices

Goldman Sachs is making its U.S. employees report whether they’ve taken one of the Covid-19 vaccines, according to an internal memo sent this week.

Employees must inform the New York-based bank by noon Thursday on their status, according to the memo. Last month, Goldman told its workforce that they should be ready to return to offices in the U.S. and United Kingdom by June 14.

“Registering your vaccination status allows us to plan for a safer return to the office for all of our people as we continue to abide by local public health measures,” the memo said. “As a result, it is mandatory that you submit your vaccination status on the Canopy app, whether or not you are vaccinated.” Canopy is the bank’s in-house portal for employee updates.

While it is legal for companies to ask workers about their vaccination status, they must keep that information confidential. Many employers have been loath to force staff to take the vaccine or provide evidence of shots, instead relying on an honor system.

Until now, disclosing vaccination status had been voluntary at the investment bank, which has about 40,000 employees globally, according to The New York Times’ DealBook, which first reported on the memo. Only those workers who hadn’t already told the bank about their status got the message, a bank spokesperson told CNBC.

Goldman employees are being asked to post the date and brand of their vaccination but don’t have to provide evidence of the inoculation, according to the Times.

“While we strongly encourage you to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, we understand that the choice to get vaccinated is a personal one,” the bank said in the memo.