A federal labour board has ruled the Canada Revenue Agency discriminated against a Christian employee by denying his request for a religious exemption from the federal government's COVID-19 vaccine mandate, awarding him $5,000 in damages.Blacklock's Reporter says Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board adjudicator Brian Russell found the CRA violated both its collective agreement and the Canadian Human Rights Act when it suspended Ottawa manager Steven Porter without pay after refusing his exemption request."I concluded the employer violated the collective agreement and the Canadian Human Rights Act," Russell wrote in his decision.The ruling found Porter, an evangelical Christian and active church member since 1999, sincerely held religious beliefs that prevented him from receiving a COVID-19 vaccine because fetal cell lines had been used during the vaccines' development or testing.At the time, public health officials acknowledged fetal cell lines had been used in aspects of COVID-19 vaccine research and development.According to the decision, Porter informed the CRA that his Christian faith required him to "protect and honour" all human life and that accepting the vaccine would violate his conscience."Christ is my supreme king and lord and I am subject to his final authority alone in all matters of life, faith and conscience," Porter wrote in his exemption request.He also told his employer that he would one day "stand before God to give an account" of his actions and therefore sought to make decisions consistent with his religious convictions..The adjudicator noted the CRA's collective agreement prohibits disciplinary action based on religion or other protected grounds.The decision also relied heavily on the Supreme Court of Canada's landmark 2004 ruling in Syndicat Northcrest v. Amselem, which held that courts should not determine the validity of religious doctrine but instead assess whether an individual's beliefs are sincerely held."The state is in no position to be, nor should it become, the arbiter of religious dogma," the Supreme Court wrote in that decision.Russell concluded Porter met the legal test for a religious accommodation."He met the burden," Russell wrote. "He explained how he lives his life in a way that is consistent with his religious beliefs."The adjudicator noted Porter had been an active member of his church for approximately 27 years and had consistently avoided vaccines he believed involved fetal tissue or fetal cell lines in their testing, development or production.The board also accepted evidence that Porter's church shared those beliefs.The case comes amid broader scrutiny of the federal government's COVID-19 vaccine policies. Government figures show that only 540 of 2,042 federal employees seeking religious exemptions to vaccine mandates were approved, an acceptance rate of roughly 26%.
