COVID-19 sets a tough new precedent that other companies may emulate, experts say.The country’s largest airline will require all employees to disclose their vaccination status by Oct.
30. Employees who don’t have a valid reason for not having their shots, such as a medical exemption, will face consequences “up to and including unpaid leave or termination,” the airline said.Chantel Goldsmith, an employment lawyer and partner with Samfiru Tumarkin LLP in Toronto, said Air Canada’s move is groundbreaking in that it’s a true vaccine mandate.
She said companies that offer their unvaccinated employees wiggle room in the form of testing aren’t really making vaccination a condition of employment at all.