Official position of worker's church supported inoculation
A Nova Scotia airport security worker has been unable to convince an arbitrator that his opposition to a vaccine mandate for airport employees was based on his religious beliefs.
Securitas Transport Aviation Security is a provider of security screening services in Eastern Canada and based in Dorval, Que. Securitas has a contract with the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA), to provide security screening services at airports in Atlantic Canada.
The worker was a screening officer for Securitas in Nova Scotia, hired around 2011.
On Sept. 9, 2021, Securitas posted a memo to employees advising that the federal government had announced that COVID-19 vaccination would be mandatory for employees in the air transport industry. As a result, Securitas employees were required to be fully vaccinated by the end of October 2021 and those who didn’t comply would be placed on unpaid administrative leave until they complied or the mandate was lifted. Employees were required to provide proof of vaccination by Oct. 15, which was later extended to Nov. 14.
Later, Securitas circulated another document that indicated employees could apply for exemptions to the vaccination mandate on medical or religious grounds.
Worker claimed religious exemption
Employees were required to sign off on the memo to acknowledge that they had read it. However, the worker refused to sign “because of its vague nature and insufficient information.” He later informed the company’s human resources specialist that he would not provide information on his vaccination status and he wanted to apply for an exemption on religious grounds.
The HR specialist met with the worker on Oct. 21 so she could obtain information on the worker’s request. The worker said that he was Romanian Orthodox and he didn’t believe that he should inject foreign DNA and other biological components into the human body, as well as his concern on the long-term effects.
Securitas provided the worker with documents showing that fetal cell cultures were not used in the mRNA vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna and were considered ethical by pro-life groups and the Catholic Church. In addition, the vaccines did not contain any DNA from humans or animals. The worker then said that he viewed the body “as a temple” and the blood must remain pure at all times. He reiterated that the vaccines contained foreign DNA and “aborted fetal cells,” contaminants, and chemicals.
On Nov. 2, the worker filed a form requesting a religious exemption with Transport Canada, stating that it was against his religious belief or practice to inject a substance contaminated with microorganisms and aborted fetal ingredients.
No evidence other than hearsay
The worker insisted that members of the clergy in Romania strongly objected to the vaccine, but it publicly supported it because of pressure from the Romanian government. However, he provided no evidence supporting this statement.
Securitas determined that the worker didn’t provide any new information supporting his claim that religious beliefs prevented him from getting vaccinated. On Nov. 12, the company denied the worker’s request for an exemption because his claim wasn’t based on the “tenets of your faith” but rather “scientific facts that are simply inaccurate and untrue.” The company placed the worker on unpaid administrative leave.
Securitas had more than 500 employees in the region and 14 did not get vaccinated. The worker was the only one who requested a religious exemption because his opposition to the vaccine was based on sincerely held religious beliefs.
The union filed a grievance alleging that the worker was entitled to accommodation on religious grounds and his opposition to the vaccine was based on sincerely held religious beliefs against contaminating his blood. The fact that the worker gave up his job of 10 years proved the extent of those beliefs, the union said.
Opposition based on scientific concerns
The arbitrator found that the worker did not provide evidence showing that ingesting products that taint the blood was contrary to his religion, other than what he verbally told Securitas. He was also unable to explain if there was a consensus among Romanian Orthodox clergy as to the basis of their alleged opposition to the vaccine, said the arbitrator.
The arbitrator also found that the worker did not show a possible nexus between his religion and his objection to the vaccine. He didn’t provide evidence that he was an active member of the Romanian Orthodox Church or any particular tenet of the Church’s faith that was a foundation for his belief, nor did he provide further explanation of his opposition to ingesting contaminants and whether it applied to food, other medicine, or other products, said the arbitrator.
The arbitrator noted that the worker’s concerns were focused on the components of the vaccine and the experimental nature of the vaccine and he didn’t link it to the position and practice of the Romanian Orthodox Church.
“I find, based on the evidence before me, that the [worker’s] reasons for not taking the vaccine, essentially because of his concerns about maintaining purity of the blood, is not based on religious belief, but his secular/medical in nature,” said the arbitrator.
The arbitrator determined that the worker failed to prove that his opposition to the mandatory vaccine was based on any religious beliefs. See United Steel Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, Local 5319 and Securitas Transport Aviation Security Ltd., 2023 CanLII 91854.
