Earlier this week we covered how employees at Houston Methodist have been ordered to get a COVID vaccination or risk losing their job.
CEO Marc Bloom emailed staff, writing “mandating the vaccine was not a decision we made lightly, but science has proven that the COVID-19 vaccines are very safe and very effective. Like I say to everyone who asks -- whether they are reporters, the public, patients, or our employees, it is our sacred obligation to do everything possible to keep our patients safe.”
Under the policy, employee are required to get the vaccine by June. However, anyone who wants an exemption on religious grounds must submit their paperwork by May 3rd.
Nurse Michelle Fuentes says she was pressured into getting the vaccine and that she needed more time to think about it and do more research on the matter.
In addition, Fuentes says she’s tested positive for COVID in the past and thus has the antibodies.
“Fuentes says a supervisor encouraged her to file for a religious exemption.
"And I said, 'Well, I don't have a religious exemption. I'm not doing this for religious reasons,' and she said, 'I know, but we'll help you fill it out, and at least this will save your job,'" Fuentes claims. "So, because I don't have a religious reason and it's a personal reason, my beliefs and my feelings aren't as worthy as someone who has a religious reason?"
Fuentes says when she did not agree to stay quiet about the reason for her departure, she was not allowed to complete her final two weeks and escorted out of the hospital.”
Houston Methodist said in a statement to Fox 26:
"Our employees have the choice to stay or leave—we are not forcing anyone to get a vaccine. But over everything, we must put patients first. It is our obligation as health care workers to do no harm to our patients, who are among the most vulnerable in our community."
Legal experts say an employer can in fact fire you for refusing to get a COVID vaccine.
"The Americans with Disabilities Act allows an employer to “establish qualification standards that will exclude individuals who pose a direct threat — i.e., a significant risk of substantial harm — to the health or safety of the individual or of others.”
Exclude, in this case, means to keep the worker out of the building. If refusing a vaccine poses a risk that one would infect coworkers or customers, the company has the right to keep that person away.
The law also says businesses must make reasonable accommodation for someone who refuses, such as working remotely, unless the change would cause undue harm to the business.
A hospital, for example, might not be able to accommodate a nurse or doctor who declines a flu shot, since infecting patients could cause illness or death, and many patients have to be examined in-person.
According to guidance issued December 16 by the EEOC, a COVID-19 vaccine is treated the same way. Whether the worker refuses a vaccine because of medical reasons or religious reasons, if there is no reasonable accommodation, the employee might be let go."