Suggestions For The COVID-19 Vaccination

(3 – 5 minute read)

Navigating COVID-19 Vaccinations In Your Organization

If you are considering vaccinations for your staff, there are a number of considerations that range from “do you really want to be involved at all” to potentially “mandating vaccination” based on your business and a number of options that fall in between.

You can mandate vaccination subject to any exceptions under Title VII (religious reasons) or the ADA (medical reasons).  Under each, you get into accommodation issues, and the process is essentially the same, but the standard for “undue hardship” for the organization is different under each:

• Religious (Title VII)  – must be based on “sincerely held religious beliefs”, do not have to accommodate if it creates an “undue hardship” – a “more than de minimus” cost or burden on the employer to provide the accommodation.  This is a lower standard than….
• Medical (ADA) – do not have to accommodate if it creates an “undue hardship”, where the hardship must create “significant difficulty or expense” based on a number of factors.

That is the Cliff Notes version. 

So, it’s all about the reason.  Personal preference, fear, personal opinion, etc. do not fall into these areas.  One caveat, that was mentioned is that “fear” is not a reason to opt-out, but if it is part of a diagnosed issue (psychological), then it can fall under the ADA exception.  General fear or dislike of getting a shot does not count.  Few people enjoy getting shots, and those that do might have themselves an ADA exception reason but don’t need it 😊.  ADA humor – it’s an HR thing.

If you are considering vaccinations for your staff, whether encouraging, strongly encouraging or requiring/mandating, contact your friendly HR Consultant for assistance on how it fits into your overall COVID plan.

As always, we encourage you to reach out to your HR Business Partner to discuss options for your organization.