A city official said several dozen employees are believed to have submitted falsified vaccination cards and have been suspended without pay.
"(The Department of Investigations) is aware of allegations involving the issuance of bogus vaccination cards and declines further comment," spokesperson Diane Struzzi said.
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The employees allegedly submitted real CVS cards listing they received the one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, but CVS hasn't been administering that brand in six months.
City officials are investigating whether there was any payment for the cards.
Sanitation Department spokesman Joshua Goodman says the allegations are being taken seriously.
"We are actively investigating this situation, in coordination with our partners at the Department of Investigation," he said. "These are very concerning allegations and we take them very seriously - getting vaccinated is important to public health, and we do not tolerate anyone faking something that is a requirement of city employment."
The workers were among the municipal employees required to have at least one dose of the vaccine by November 1, and 87% of the department's roughly 10,000 employees are either fully or partially vaccinated.
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