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Fact check: False claim that an employee strike shut down restaurants at Denver airport

Ella Lee, USA TODAY
·2 min read

The claim: Employee strike over COVID-19 vaccine mandates shut down restaurants at Denver airport

As the compliance deadline for President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate creeps closer, misinformation about companies and employees purportedly defying the order is spreading fast online.

“Denver Airport. The owner of 5 restaurants in C terminal made a Nov. 1st mandate or get fired,” an Oct. 14 Facebook post reads. "None of the cooks, dishwashers, bussers, & hosts showed up to work. So there were no restaurants open in C Terminal. He immediately sent an email reversing mandate. And that’s how it’s done. You don’t comply; You fight."

The claim originated on Twitter but has since been deleted. In two days, the Facebook post received more than 700 shares and 800 likes.

But the claim is unfounded. A spokesperson told USA TODAY there was no concessions worker strike at Denver International Airport.

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USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who posted the claimfor comment.

No concession strike in Denver

Alex Renteria, a spokesperson for the airport, told USA TODAY the claim is false.

“We have not had any concession employee strike, nor have any restaurants on Concourse C been closed other than their normal hours of operation,” Renteria said.

There is no airport-wide vaccine mandate, so companies with storefronts in the airport are able to make their own decision on requiring the vaccine, Renteria said. She said about 99% of the City of Denver employees who work at the airport have been vaccinated.

Restaurant groups Taste on the Fly and Paradies Lagardère, who appear to own multiple restaurants in Concourse C in line with the post’s description, did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s requests for comment regarding their vaccine policies.

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A one-day pay strike by Denver airport custodians did take place in early October, the Denver Post reported.

Our rating: False

We rate FALSE the claim that an employee strike over COVID-19 vaccine mandates shut down restaurants at the Denver airport. A spokesperson told USA TODAY a concessions worker strike never took place at the airport.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: No evidence Denver airport strike shut down restaurants