Refusal to Mask Up

The Alberta decision of Feasby, J. in Benke v Loblaw Companies considered a claim made by the plaintiff employee who refused to wear a mask or similar device in the course of his employment, one which required him to visit stores. No medical evidence was offered to support his position.

The company chose not to terminate his employment but rather placed him on an unpaid leave of absence. This continued even until trial. The employer’s position was that, given that the mask mandate was since rescinded, that he was able to return to work.

The court rejected the constructive dismissal claim as it found that the employer’s action was reasonable. It dismissed the claim.

This is consistent with similar cases in which the employer had used this leave of absence approach to deal with employees who had refused to vaccinate, contrary to the employer’s policy.