Jennifer answers a question from a listener on whether an employee can be fired for not getting a covid vaccination:
The listener has asked a great question! Even though the COVID-19 pandemic is relatively new, regular employment laws apply. A federal district court, the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing have all ruled that mandatory vaccination policies are legal. Of course, as I mentioned in the interview, if an employee has a legitimate religious or medical reason not to be vaccinated, then the employer will need to gather appropriate documentation to consider whether allowing an exemption is reasonable. Those sorts of evaluations must be done on a case-by-case basis, and because of the risks associated with COVID-19, it’s frequently not a reasonable accommodation to exempt an employee from a mandatory vaccination requirement.
California is now the first state to require teachers to get the covid vaccine or weekly tests.
Dozens are protesting Kaiser Permante's recent decision to require COVID-19 vaccines for all its employees and physicians.
The Sheriff's union in San Francisco representing the deputies says many will look for a new job or retire early if they're not given another choice other than to get vaccinated by a September 15th deadline.
I talked with Employment Attorney Jennifer Shaw President of the Shaw Law Group about workplace vaccine mandates.
Jennifer Shaw, President, Shaw Law Group