OLYMPIA, Wash. – Over a thousand people gathered in Olympia Saturday to protest one of the strictest vaccine mandates in the country.

Earlier this month, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee ordered state employees and healthcare works to get vaccinated by Oct. 18 or face termination. Last week, he expanded the order to also include all school employees.

There will be no personal exemptions, but employees can apply for religious or medical exemptions.

Several other local governments in Washington have also issued vaccine mandates for their employees including Thurston County, King County, and the City of Seattle.

On Thursday, the largest state employee union filed a lawsuit against the governor in an attempt to stop the vaccine mandate from going into effect.

A spokesperson with the union says the lawsuit is “about the state failing to meet their obligation to bargain the effects of the vaccine mandate.”