In a decision with potential implications for employers who are considering implementing a mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policy, a federal court in New York found that a hospital employee who was terminated in December 2017, for...more
We have seen recent articles speculating on whether employers can require their employees to take an FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment or continued employment. Here, without giving any legal...more
As we enter flu season (in the midst of a national spike in COVID-19 cases), and it now appears that a COVID-19 vaccine is on the horizon, employers are struggling with whether they should require employees to be vaccinated...more
Flu season is upon us. Can employers require a flu shot? More importantly, should they? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) emphasizes that getting a flu vaccine this year is “more important than ever...more
With the outbreak of the corona virus dominating headlines, it is a great time to dust off the company policy on dealing with flu season and infectious diseases, generally, in the workplace. Contagious diseases are...more
Q: Can I require that my employee get vaccinated? A: This question most frequently comes up in relationship to the flu vaccine but, with the national focus on measles, this question has also been asked more broadly...more
In previous blog posts, we have emphasized how subtle the difference can be in defining what constitutes “telemarketing” under the TCPA. This is especially the case where the messages at issue are part of a residential number...more
The EEOC announced that it reached a $74,418 settlement with a hospital in Owosso, Michigan, to settle a religious discrimination lawsuit the agency had filed under Title VII against the hospital in U.S. District Court for...more
Recent actions by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) emphasize employers’ obligations under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to accommodate workers’ religious objections to receiving a flu vaccination. ...more
Hospital Demanded Employee Take Flu Shot Despite His Religious Beliefs, Federal Agency Charged - NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Saint Thomas Health (STH), operating Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital in Murfreesboro, Tenn., will pay...more
The annual flu season is upon us, and once again, employers with mandatory flu vaccine programs are wrestling with the prospect of complex employment litigation. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”)...more
It’s that time of year again, with many employers offering free flu shots to employees in hopes of reducing flu-related absences and resulting productivity decreases in the months ahead. Most often, a flu shot is offered as a...more
This is not the first time you’ve heard from us about flu shots in the workplace. And here we are again. Each flu season, employers find themselves in the hot seat when well-intentioned attempts to implement a policy...more
Dear Littler: I work in a health care setting in New Jersey. As flu season is approaching, we emailed all of our patient care employees (nurses, physical therapists, intake staff, etc.) to remind them that an immunization is...more
Doubling down on the healthcare exception to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that Rite Aid was not liable for flu shot reminder calls....more
As we have just survived one of the worst flu seasons in recent memory, now is a good time to consider whether you should implement or revise a mandatory flu shot policy for 2018. The Center for Disease Control and...more
Many healthcare providers in North Carolina have instituted policies requiring their employees who have patient contact to receive the flu vaccine each year. Such policies will typically include a process by which an employee...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit on behalf of a nursing home employee alleging she was forced to receive a flu shot to keep her job when she could not provide a note from a clergy member in support...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that the Healthcare Exception to the TCPA applied to a case involving a healthcare provider that sent a text message with a flu shot reminder to a patient who provided...more
Are you in the know? Yeah, I'm sorry. I should have an in-depth, incisive legal analysis of the Sixth Circuit panel decision in EEOC v. R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. That was my plan, and I promise that I will --...more
According to the Centers for Disease Control (“CDC”), the United States experiences a flu season each year. With this year’s flu season considered one of the worst since the 2009-2010 pandemic, many employers wish to...more
After rescinding a job offer to an applicant, a Michigan healthcare provider finds itself in federal court defending a religious accommodation claim. If your organization requires employees to get flu vaccines, your policy...more
It should come as no surprise to readers of this blog that the TCPA is the subject of regular criticism by judges across the country. See e.g. Dominguez v. Yahoo!, Inc., No. 13-1887, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11346, at *20 (E.D....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Mandatory vaccines and flu shots present challenges to employers attempting to accommodate the sincerely held religious beliefs of employees. In this case, a hospital worker claimed that he was terminated...more
The last months of the year are marked by holidays, family, snow days -- and influenza, commonly known as the flu. For the 2017-2018 flu season, the Center for Disease Control ("CDC") recommends adults receive an injectable...more