Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
In overreacting to COVID-19, the government pressured Americans to wear masks that the virus could pass through and submit to a vaccine many Americans didn’t want to take for various reasons.
The private sector followed suit, with some refusing to grant religious exemptions for the vaccine and firing employees who chose not to be vaccinated.
We’re in a different era now. Companies and government agencies that penalized employees are paying a price.
Following an investigation by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a hospital system in Illinois and Wisconsin called Mercyhealth will have to pay over $1 million in back pay and damages to employees fired for refusing the COVID vaccine and those penalized with wage deductions. Mercyhealth also must reinstated fired employees.
According to the EEOC, the hospital system denied employees’ requests for religious accommodations and didn’t give others the chance to ask for one before firing them.
The EEOC stated in a press release that such “alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on religion.”
Under the settlement, Mercyhealth also must report religious accommodation requests and “decisions related to any system-wide vaccination program” to the EEOC.
Are the chickens coming home to roost? Some people have never had a COVID vaccine and never had COVID. Others have had the vaccine and multiple boosters — and still caught the virus more than once. The government shut down churches (no “separation of church and state” in that case, right secularists?) and went after churches that refused to shut down or limit gatherings.
The late John MacArthur, who was the pastor at Grace Community Church in Southern California and hosted the Grace to You radio show, stood firm against the state’s orders and won a settlement.
The American people have said “Never again!” to the government’s overreaction and overreach during the pandemic. We won’t tolerate mask or vaccine mandates or any order to shut down worship services.
Photo credit: By Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, link
