A nurse is suing a Houston hospital after it made coronavirus vaccinations mandatory for all of its 26,000 employees.
Jennifer Bridges, who says she isn’t ready to get the vaccine, has said she will refuse the get the jab even it means losing her job.
Houston Methodist President and CEO Dr. Marc Boom said his hospital is the first in the United States to require all of its employees to get one of three Covid-19 shots.
Unless the person is exempt through religious or medical reasons, the hospital has said people who refuse to get the vaccine past June 7 could be fired.
But Bridges told KHOU11 that she wants to give the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) more time to gather data and research on the vaccines.
None of the three vaccines developed by Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson have been full approved by the administration, with each one having been given emergency authorisation during the global pandemic.
The nurse has set up a GoFundMe page, where she has said legal action against the hospital is now pending.
Jennifer Bridges (pictured) is suing a Houston hospital after it made coronavirus vaccinations mandatory for all of its 26,000 employees. She has said she will refuse the get the jab even it means losing her job as she wants to wait for there to be be more research
News of Bridges’ lawsuit comes after the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission held its first virtual hearing to discuss how Covid-19 is affecting the American workplaces, during which vaccines were discussed.
‘It is something that they are actively considering,’ said Michael Eastman, a senior vice president for the Center for Workplace Compliance.
‘The Commission should clarify its existing guidance to state that employers may instate a mandatory vaccine policy.’
As vaccines were first being rolled out in December 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published guidance about vaccines and the workplace, saying it does not consider a vaccine a medical examination.
Therefore, an employer can require an employee to have a Covid-19 jab if it chooses. The case for a mandate is stronger of getting the vaccine is ‘job-related and consistent with business necessity,’ the guidance states.
The EEOC says an employer can also ask to see proof of a person having been vaccinated, because a vaccine card does not include disability information.
Bridges is a mother, while her father father is in a nursing home, and she has worked as a nurse for six years, but despite saying she understands the need for safety measures, she wants more time.
‘All we’re asking is: just more time. In the meantime, we’ll wear N-95s, face shields. We’ll do what the CDC says is perfectly safe,’ Bridges said to KHOU11.
But Boom is showing no sign of backing down, with the hospital’s new HR policy stating that if an employee is not vaccinated by June 7, they will be suspended.
If they are then not vaccinated within the two week suspension period, the company will ‘initiate the employee termination process,’ according to CNN.
Unless the person is exempt through religious or medical reasons, the hospital has said people who refuse to get the vaccine past June 7 will be fired
‘We’re never going to make anybody take the vaccine. But at the end of the day if they choose not to take the vaccine there are many other places they can work,’ he said, adding that Bridges is among 3,000 employees yet to get the vaccine.
‘It’s not a surprise that there are some people who don’t want to take the vaccine. That’s ultimately anybody’s right,’ Boom told the network on Monday.
‘But it’s also our right as an employer and particularly a healthcare institution to where we have a sacred obligation to care for our patients and to keep them safe.’
Bridges, who was honored by Houston Methodist for her ‘dedicated service’ in October 2019, says her cause is gaining support from all around the world.
Thousands have signed her petition titled ‘Covid Vaccine should not be Mandatory or Termination!!’ and on Tuesday, she launched a crowd-sourcing GoFundMe.
‘A lot of you know me by now. My name is Jennifer. I’m helping to fight for the rights of the employees of Houston Methodist,’ she has written on the page.
Houston Methodist President and CEO Dr. Marc Boom (pictured) said his hospital is the first in the United States to require all of its employees to get one of three Covid-19 shots
‘They will terminate us if we do not comply with taking the covid vaccine by June 7th. Whether we are comfortable with it or not they do not care. We are simply asking for more time, proper research, and fully FDA approved before injecting it into our bodies. Every approach so far we have tried does not work with them.
‘They have clearly showed they do not value their employees. Help us fight this battle by giving us the power to have a lawsuit against them! It is already in play and we have a lot of employees on board with it. It will take a while and possibly become expensive. Every dollar will help us fight this!’
When Houston Methodist first made vaccines mandatory, Boom told CBS News that ‘Mandating the vaccine was not a decision we made lightly, but science has proven that the COVID-19 vaccines are very safe and very effective.
‘Like I say to everyone who asks—whether they are reporters, the public, patients, or our employees, it is our sacred obligation to do everything possible to keep our patients safe.
‘By choosing to be vaccinated, you are leaders—showing our colleagues in health care what must be done to protect our patients, ourselves, our families, and our communities.’
