Employment Lawyer in Global News on Forced Vaccinations

As vaccine distribution across the province increases, so have concerns regarding employee rights in regards to vaccines and health and safety in the workplace. Will COVID-19 vaccines be mandatory in the workplace? Can employees be penalized for refusing to be vaccinated?

Lior Samfiru, an employment lawyer and Co-founding Partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP spoke with Global News to discuss the possibility of mandatory vaccines in the workplace and employee rights.

“Requiring a medical procedure such as a vaccine could be considered a breach of privacy or a human rights violation,” says Lior Samfiru. Samfiru does go onto explain that in some circumstances, however, it could be possible.

As the concept of vaccination passports garners more interest, employees who are required to travel as a term of employment might have no choice but to be vaccinated. Government intervention could also pose changes to mandatory vaccinations. “If the government issued new rules mandating vaccinations in certain workplace settings or for specific roles, employers would be justified in implementing policies that comply with those requirements,” Samfiru says.

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Samfiru also cautions employers on whether or not they can ask employees if they have been vaccinated. “If Canadian health authorities were to issue guidelines saying only full-vaccinated people are allowed to mingle indoors without a mask, then it would be appropriate for employers to ask who received the shot to decide what workplace measures to put in place,” Samfiru explains.

Ultimately, pressuring employees to be vaccinated poses future difficulties for employers. “I’ve received a number of calls over the past couple of months from individuals who have been given these ultimatums from their employer: get vaccinated or else,” Samfiru says, “I think these employers will find themselves on the wrong side of a wrongful dismissal claim.”