Ottawa lawyer talks to CFRA about vaccinations at work

Interview Summary

As more vaccines become available to Canadians across the province of Ontario, employers and employees will have to determine what this will mean for the workplace. If employees refuse to be vaccinated, will they be allowed to remain working from home? Will employers be able to enforce COVID-19 vaccines in the workplace?

Lior Samfiru, an employment lawyer and co-founding partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP joins Leslie Roberts on Newstalk 580 CFRA in Ottawa to answer questions regarding vaccines and employment rights.

Interview Notes

Can an employer make it mandatory for employees to receive a COVID-19 vaccine?

This is an unprecedented situation for many employers and employees. Ultimately in most cases, an employer is not going to be able to mandate an employee be vaccinated as there are various human rights at play.

Is the employer ultimately responsible for ensuring accommodations are made for employees regarding vaccines?

Employers are obligated legally to accommodate employees. Despite the pandemic, many employees have been able to work safely with new health and safety regulations. New regulations that have ensured workplaces could continue to operate will make it difficult for employers to enforce vaccines.

Why is it that children can be required to be vaccinated for school but employees cannot be for the workplace?

By law, schools can require that children can be vaccinated. The government can possibly intervene and require certain positions and industries to require vaccinations, but it has not been implemented yet.

If the government did implement vaccination requirements, and an individual protested, who would win?

By the time that an issue like this would reach a high court, like the Supreme court of Canada. if vaccines are proven to be safe and effective, the court could lean towards the greater common good.

What are common concerns employment lawyers at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP are hearing from the public?

Many Canadians are still facing the consequences of temporary layoffs as well as changes to their terms of employment. Employers are also struggling in order to make changes and survive while also taking into account employee rights.

Are the majority of settlements being resolved before they end up in court?

Going to court is rare and in most cases, matters are resolved quickly with a financial settlement. Employees ultimately have to decide what choice to make regarding significant changes to their terms of employment, if they would like to remain on a layoff or not.