The recent announcement from Team Biden that federal agencies should not generally require vaccination is unbelievable. That is a huge error and a missed opportunity. Why the federal government, with a workforce of over two million employees and nearly double the number of contractors, would not seek to assure the protection of its own workforce and the public with whom they interact is confounding. That might be one of the biggest public health policy mistakes of the current administration in its response to COVID-19. Not only is it inconsistent with best practices in public health, but it sends a terrible message to other employers. After all, an important part of the imperative to require workplace vaccination is ethical. Despite the fact that nearly two-thirds or more of American adults have gotten at least one shot, many people, particularly those who live in rural and less resourced areas, are being left behind. It is critical to reach those unvaccinated through the workplace. In the beginning of the pandemic, we neglected the health and safety of essential workers, failing to provide routine testing or require strategies to mitigate the spread of infection, like adequate workplace ventilation. Now is the time to make up for that mistake and make sure workers are vaccinated, not only to protect them and their families, but to accelerate the economic recovery. The administration markets itself as a force for workers. That means making sure they get their shots, whether employers like it or not.