“Shocking absence of interest” in evidence on Purolator’s part, Glass writes

“Banning unvaccinated workers from the workplace after June 2022 did nothing for
their safety and contributed nothing to the safety of the others working there”

Purolator employees and Owner/Operators should be compensated for the damages they suffered when they were put on unpaid Leave of Absence during COVID, according to a copy of the December 14^th grievance arbitration decision obtained by Road Warrior News.

Justice Nicholas Glass, in his December 14^th decision, validated the beliefs of complainants who declined to share their private health information, including COVID-19 vaccination status, with Purolator in 2021 and 2022. These employees were put on unpaid Leave of Absence in 2022.

The grievance was brought by Local #31 of the Teamsters Union against Purolator Canada Inc.

Justice Glass puts forth the proposition that while making a COVID vaccine was a reasonable  requirement as part of a Safer Workplaces Program (SWP) during the early months of COVID, at a certain point on the timeline the requirement was no longer “reasonable.” This point occurred when there was insufficient evidence to prove the two-dose series was effective against the Omnicrom variant. There was no evidence that subsequent vaccines made the workplace any safer.

“The effectiveness of the Policy to achieve the employer’s goals of improved workplace safety reached a point at which the interests of the unvaccinated workers in personal autonomy and bodily integrity as well as their interests in maintaining their livelihood outweighed the interests of the employer. The improvement in workplace safety achieved by the ban became so minimal or nominal by the late spring of 2022 that it weighed very little.

“The added consideration that the unvaccinated workers were suffering the devastating impact of loss of livelihood, as a direct consequence of the Policy, meant that the scales which balance these interests as required by the KVP and Irving tests came down at that point resoundingly on the side of the grievors,” Glass writes in Point 43.

In his “Summary of All Conclusions,” Glass notes “The hourly paid grievances are upheld. The group grievance is upheld. The grievors are entitled to be compensated for their losses which will include any lost wages and benefits, between July 1, 2022 and their first day of work following May 1, 2023.

“The owner operators’ grievances are upheld. They are entitled to be compensated for their losses commencing the first date that they lost revenue from being denied the use of a vaccinated relief driver. There is no common end date for their losses at this point. The losses are yet to be determined. “The administrative non-attestation termination grievances, either individually or as part of the group grievance, are upheld. These grievors are entitled to the same level of compensation as the other grievors in their category