# 2022-029 Careers, COVID-19

Case summary

F&R Date: 2023-10-16

The grievor contested the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) COVID-19 vaccination policy and argued that the requirement to attest to his COVID-19 vaccination status was a violation of privacy. He also disputed the denial of his request for religious accommodation as well as the remedial measures he was issued for non-compliance with the CAF COVID-19 policy.

There was no Initial Authority decision as the matter being grieved concerned a decision, act, or omission by the Chief of the Defence Staff.

The Committee found that the CAF COVID-19 vaccination policy infringed on rights protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Charter). The Committee also found that although the policy was not in itself arbitrary in the context of the global COVID-19 pandemic, its implementation was overly broad and disproportionate. The Committee concluded that the CAF vaccination policy was contrary to the Charter because it limited protected rights in a manner that was not proportional, failing to minimize the impairment of protected rights and strike a balance between those individual rights and the public interest.

The Committee also found that the grievor's reasons for seeking accommodation were not religious in nature, and that he had failed to establish the religious nexus required to gain approval of his request. Next, the Committee found that the requirement for the grievor to attest to his COVID-19 vaccination status was justified to provide the CAF with accurate information prior to potentially deploying members into high-risk settings. Finally, the Committee found that the remedial measures issued to the grievor were not justified.

The Committee recommended that the Final Authority afford partial redress by quashing the remedial measures and expunging all relevant documentation from the grievor's personnel record.