The September 2022 case of Parmar v Tribe Management, a decision of the B.C.S.C. considered the issue of an employer mandated vaccine policy. This term purported to allow the employer to place an employee who declined to accept the vaccine on an unpaid leave. The policy exempted employees who could not comply due to religious or medical reasons. The court found these conditions reasonable and dismissed the constructive dismissal action.

These points should be noted:

1. The Defendant was not intending to terminate the employment for she could return to work at any time as long as she was vaccinated.
2. The Court took judicial notice both of the effect of the pandemic and the safety and utility of the vaccine.
3. The plaintiff was the only one of the 200 employees who refused. This alone was evidence of the objective basis that the policy was not unreasonable.
4. While it is extraordinary for an employer policy to affect one’s bodily integrity, given the extraordinary challenges of COVID, the policy was reasonable.
5. The plaintiff was not being forced to vaccinate, rather she was simply forced to make a difficult decision, vaccinate and work vs don’t vaccinate and don’t work.

This was the first civil case on this issue. There have been arbitral cases which were referenced in the decision.