The B.C. Court of Appeal has overturned a labor administrator’s decision that supported Purolator employees terminated or suspended for not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. This marks a shift from a previous lower court ruling that upheld Labour Arbitrator Nicholas Glass’s decision to compensate numerous employees for lost wages and benefits due to the vaccination mandate.
Represented by Teamsters Local Union No. 31, the employees filed numerous grievances, contending that Purolator’s vaccine mandate was unreasonable. While Glass initially deemed the mandate reasonable until June 30, 2022, citing evolving scientific evidence, the Court of Appeal criticized Glass for applying a standard of “correctness” rather than “reasonableness.”
Justice David Harris highlighted Glass’s independent analysis of medical data to assess the mandate’s reasonableness, ultimately deeming it unreasonable to scrutinize an employer’s response based on potential problems identified in studies. As a result, Purolator is now required to compensate employees for lost wages incurred between July 1, 2022, and their return to work post-May 1, 2023.
Moving forward, a new arbitrator will reexamine the grievances raised by the union. Purolator initially implemented a “safer workplaces policy” mandating COVID-19 vaccinations for employees in September 2021 amid the pandemic’s escalation. This policy led to the suspension of unvaccinated employees in January 2022, prompting the union’s grievances.
Glass’s ruling in favor of the employees in December 2023 was based on his belief that two vaccine doses alone were ineffective against the rapidly spreading Omicron variant. The Court of Appeal criticized Glass for relying on his interpretation of scientific research, leading to an undermined award.
The court emphasized the need for reasonableness in assessing employers’ responses to evolving situations, especially during a period of uncertainty due to the virus’s mutations. CBC News has reached out to Teamsters Local Union No. 31 and Purolator for their comments on this development.