How Vaccination Status Can Lead to Discrimination
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Perhaps, there is a vaccination mandate, which means employees must be vaccinated. Or maybe vaccinations are still optional for employees to allow for minimal disruption to how the company operates. There are pros and cons to each choice. With Covid-19 having caused a worldwide pandemic, millions of deaths, and the upheaval of life as we knew it in 2020, the availability of a vaccine was seen as a blessing by many.
The possible lifesaving implications of a vaccine meant employers could reopen their doors and safely reintegrate staff working from home back into the office. Mandating vaccines for in-office work was a smart choice for companies that wanted to give employees and clients confidence in the safety of coming back into their buildings.
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Some employees either did not want to get the vaccine, could not get it, or wanted to continue working from home to ensure safety. The problems posed by the pandemic were troublesome enough for the government to support vaccination mandates in the workplace, which allow businesses to make employment decisions based on whether employees get vaccinated.
Still, if organizations are not knowledgeable or careful with how they structure these changes within their policies, they could enforce discriminatory policies and put themselves at risk for lawsuits. These risks can come from not being aware of local and federal vaccination laws, not being aware of legally protected reasons allowing employees to stay unvaccinated, not having policies to protect confidentiality regarding vaccination status at work, and treating employees differently based on vaccination status.
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Unaware of State-Wide and Federal Vaccination Policies and Laws
Your organization has the choice to either mandate vaccinations for employees or to make them optional. If vaccinations are mandated, employees must be vaccinated to continue normal work activities, and companies will have the blessing of The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for these policies. There are a few exceptions to mandates, including disability, sincerely held religious beliefs or practices, medical exemptions, and state laws that allow for other types of exemptions.
If your company is mandating vaccinations based on federal backing, you should ensure that you are aware of state laws for vaccination mandates in the workplace. Currently, some states are fighting against vaccine mandates, asserting that the government should not tell private and public sector businesses how to operate. Therefore, it is wise for organizations to check for changes with these laws frequently.
Unaware of Legally Protected Reasons for Being Unvaccinated
Organizations that are mandating vaccinations at work should be aware of all exemptions to vaccinations. These typically include disability, medical, or religious exemptions. If employees claim the need for exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine because of any of these reasons, employers will need to try to accommodate them in a way that will still allow them to work.
Nevertheless, the EEOC provides for businesses to ensure the safety of other employees or clients. For example, companies can enforce regular COVID-19 testing, temperature checks, and COVID-19 screening questions. They can also implement work-from-home accommodations if an employee’s unvaccinated status is deemed too much of a threat to other staff members. The workplace poses too much risk to the unvaccinated employee’s health.
Suppose it is decided that an unvaccinated employee is legally protected from getting vaccinated. In that case, employers should be intentional about documenting these conversations and any steps taken as an added measure of protection. HR teams will also need to be trained on handling exemption requests and how to determine their validity.
READ: Sustaining Your DEI Goals During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Not Protecting Private Information Regarding Vaccination Status
Vaccination status is mainly considered confidential medical information that HR must keep confidential. Vaccination status can be a controversial discussion topic, with the potential to cause conflict and disturbance among employees. Employers have to be careful about preventing conflict surrounding vaccines in the workplace to maintain a professional atmosphere and prevent the risk of confidential information being shared that could cause a discrimination claim. It may not be totally possible to prevent employees from knowing if other colleagues are vaccinated or not.
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Still, employees should not be discussing their opinions about the vaccination status of other employees based on factors such as age or confidential medical history information. These types of indiscretions could fall under the EEOC description of harassment.
Treating Employees Differently Based on Vaccination Status
The EEOC prevents discrimination against employees based on race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information. Employers who mandate vaccinations in the workplace cannot offer different access to career advancement opportunities or exclude employees from meetings and in-person gatherings based on whether they are vaccinated or exempt from vaccination.
This is why enforcing CDC and/or OSHA guidelines for all employee gatherings is still a good idea for employers to follow, including wearing masks and social distancing when possible. These, however, are not mandated guidelines for employers.
The post-COVID-19 workplace continues to be a place of change. Employers are being tasked with keeping companies operating efficiently while keeping employees with varying needs and opinions safe. To prevent discrimination based on vaccination status, employers must be aware of the latest federal and state laws surrounding mandated vaccines, CDC, EEOC, and OSHA guidelines, vaccination confidentiality measures, and how to keep the workplace fair and safe for all employees. Still, making work safe is the top priority, and the laws and agency guidelines support this.
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