The Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board is bracing for years of hearings to address complaints that federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates discriminated against employees' religious beliefs. Blacklock's Reporter says in an effort to manage the overwhelming number of grievances, the board has ended in-person hearings and will rely on written submissions to expedite the process.“There are over 350 religious accommodation grievances currently active with the Board,” wrote arbitrator Christopher Rootham. “Arbitration hearings dealing with similar policies in the private or broader public sector have tended to last two days, sometimes followed by written submissions.”Rootham explained that conducting oral hearings for every case would be "an impossible burden for the employer, for the bargaining agents, and the Board." Future cases will now be resolved through written submissions to prevent further backlog.From November 2021 to June 2022, the Treasury Board enforced its Policy On COVID-19 Vaccination, which required federal employees, including those working from home, to show proof of vaccination. While medical and religious exemptions were allowed, religious exemptions required a signed attestation and subjected claimants to inquiries about their faith.“The manager must be satisfied the employee holds a sincere religious belief,” stated the Treasury Board’s Managers’ Toolkit for the implementation of the policy. Each request was handled individually.In 2022, cabinet disclosed that 74% of religious exemption requests and 70% of medical exemption requests were rejected under the policy.The board’s move to expedite hearings came after it dismissed the first of hundreds of complaints. A finance officer at the Department of Foreign Affairs, earning $64,000 annually, had refused to show proof of vaccination, citing his Catholic faith and moral conscience.“As a Catholic I am told to follow my conscience,” the employee wrote, arguing that vaccination should be voluntary. He referenced a public letter from the Archbishop of Ottawa, which stated, “Vaccination is not as a rule a moral obligation and therefore it must be voluntary.”However, Rootham dismissed the complaint, stating, “His argument amounts to this: ‘I conscientiously object to the vaccine for reasons I do not explain, and Catholics are expected to follow their conscience, therefore my objection is religious.’” Rootham added that similar claims had been routinely rejected by other arbitrators.
