'They could be fired': Employees may need to show proof of vaccination as workplaces reopen
As Ontario inches toward its economic reopening and employers prepare to recall their workers, labour lawyers are warning that in some cases employees may need to be vaccinated to hold onto their jobs.
“Any employee working cheek-to-jowl with other employees could be ordered to be vaccinated,” employment lawyer Howard Levitt said Monday. “If they don’t, they could be fired.”
Levitt predicts that requiring employees who work alongside others to be fully immunized could be part of the province’s post-pandemic normal, given that employers are legally obligated to operate a safe workplace—and could face steep fines and other tough penalties if they don’t.
The main exceptions would be on medical or religious grounds, which Levitt says would have to be substantive and documented.
“There would have to be accommodations for such situations,” Lai-King Hum, founder of Hum Law Firm, told CTV Toronto on Monday.
“In some workplaces that may mean that those employees would have to work in an area where they are not in contact with other employers.”
But there is no legal requirement for employers to accommodate employees who refuse to be vaccinated by offering separate workspaces or work-from-home options, according to Levitt.
Quebec recently said that certain health care workers would need to be fully vaccinated, but a spokesperson for Ontario’s Ministry of Labour said Monday that the provincial government is not considering any vaccine mandates.
In the U.S., Saks is requiring immunization for workers heading back to head office, and the cast and crew of the broadway production Hamilton are also required to be vaccinated. Airlines like United and Delta have imposed vaccination criteria on new hires.
Labour lawyers say any vaccine requirement in Ontario workplaces could apply to staff who work alongside colleagues, and especially the public, but not to employees who work-from-home.
Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act does not directly address vaccination or the enforcement of employer vaccination policies for workers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.