CN’s national mandatory vaccination policy is upheld

Our Toronto office was counsel to CN in a labour arbitration advanced by the United Steelworkers, Local 2004, challenging CN’s Canada-wide mandatory vaccination policy. At issue in the litigation was the reasonableness of CN’s national mandatory vaccination policy, including the imposition of unpaid leaves of absence on non-compliant union members.

Considerable medical and other expert evidence was adduced and we successfully had the national policy upheld and the grievances dismissed. This matter is significant for CN as it avoids significant financial exposure and essentially precludes its other unions from challenging the policy. It is also significant for other employers, including those with employees who perform work outdoors, who may, to varying extents, rely on this decision to support their mandatory vaccination policies.