More Top Picks Dji Mavic Air
player ready...Mercyhealth, which operates hospitals and clinics in Illinois and Wisconsin, has agreed to pay $1 million to employees it either terminated or subjected to a wage deduction because they refused to comply with the health system’s COVID-19 vaccine policy, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Mercyhealth also offered to reinstate the employees it terminated.
The settlement follows an EEOC investigation that found reasonable cause to believe that Mercyhealth discriminated against the employees based on their religion by denying them a religious accommodation, according to a news release. The EEOC also found that Mercyhealth discriminated against a class of similar employees across all its facilities from September 2021 to May 2022.
The settlement requires Mercyhealth to train human resources personnel and report to the EEOC about religious accommodation requests and decisions related to any systemwide vaccination program.
Mercyhealth’s conduct violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on religion, according to the EEOC.
“At the start of my tenure as Acting Chair of the EEOC, I committed to focusing our agency’s resources to address the very real problem of religious discrimination, and this resolution is just the beginning,” Acting Chair Andrea Lucas said in a new release. “This is an example of what our agency can accomplish when we work with employers to ensure that the doors of our workplaces are equally open to religious employees. I am proud of the monetary relief that we have obtained here, and I am equally proud that these employees—who remained committed to their religious beliefs and practice at great personal cost—will receive job offers.”
Kara Sankey, vice president of clinical operations and chief nursing officer for Mercyhealth, said in the news release that the health system respects the religious beliefs and practices of its employees.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mercyhealth had to confront and address extraordinary challenges in order to carry out its charitable health care mission, while doing its best to protect the health and safety of its patients and its employees and comply with federal rules requiring all hospital staff receive vaccinations,” Sankey said.
“The balancing of these critical goals could not be achieved without the dedication of our doctors and staff in times of significant personal risk, and Mercyhealth appreciates the work and assistance of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in resolving these remaining disputes,” Sankey said. “The process permits Mercyhealth to demonstrate its long-held commitment to employee rights and to close another chapter in its work during the pandemic.”