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- A group of United employees sued the company, claiming it was practicing a “pattern of discrimination” by denying their requests for vaccine exemptions.
- More than 97% of airline employees are vaccinated against COVID-19 until the September 27 vaccination deadline.
- United Airlines was the first major U.S. airline to require its employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to continue working.
Six United Airlines employees have filed a lawsuit against the company, saying it discriminates against workers through its company-wide vaccination mandate.
The lawsuit, filed in Texas federal court on Tuesday, alleges the company has refused to initiate or denied employee requests for religious or medical exemptions from the COVID-19 vaccine, which they say violate Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Americans with Disability Act. He also said United’s “indefinite leave without pay” policy failed to provide “reasonable accommodations” for unvaccinated employees.
“United’s actions have left complainants with the impossible choice of taking the COVID-19 vaccine, to the detriment of their religious beliefs and their health, or of losing their livelihood,” according to the lawsuit.
The position of the complainants varies within the company: two pilots, a flight attendant and representatives of operations / services. The lawsuit says they requested at least one of the two exemptions, but were ultimately denied and put on “indefinite unpaid leave” by the company.
United Airlines has yet to respond to Insider’s request for comment.
In the meantime, the air carrier announced on Wednesday that 97% of employees are now vaccinated against COVID-19. United was the first major US airline to issue a vaccination warrant for workers.
This comes less than a week before the September 27 deadline for major vaccines for company employees, announced in August. The company said in the initial announcement that all new and current employees who come into contact with customers should be vaccinated against the coronavirus to continue working past the September deadline, unless an exemption is granted for religious or medical reasons. People on leave can return to work once the company considers it “safe” to do so, but until then the leave would be unpaid.
The company said it strongly encourages, but does not require, that its passengers get vaccinated.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said the company accepted “most” of the exemption requests it received, but rejected some requests after verification. Kirby said only “a handful” of employees have resigned due to vaccine needs, adding that the company expects more quits by the vaccine deadline, but “it will be a very small number. of people who will ultimately choose to leave “.
Delta Airlines has also implemented a punitive system for its unvaccinated workers, increasing health insurance for those who refuse to be vaccinated. American Airlines has removed special pandemic time off for its unvaccinated employees, while Alaska Airlines has announced it will stop offering paid time off to workers who contract COVID.
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