Judge Bars City of St. Paul From Enforcing COVID-19 Jab Mandate Due to Unfair Labor Practice

“A judge ruled Thursday that the city of St. Paul’s COVID vaccination policy for police, firefighters and legions of other unionized city workers should have been part of the bargaining process, and he barred the city from enforcing it until it is approved as part of a negotiated agreement,” Pioneer Press reported.

The employee unions filed lawsuits last year over of the immoral COVID-19 jab mandate, calling it an unfair labor practice.

The judge agreed with them.

“It is difficult for this Court to imagine what could be more intrusive and more destructive to the employer-employee relationship than requiring employees to forfeit their bodily autonomy in the name of maintaining their livelihood,” he wrote

JUDGE: “It is difficult for this Court to imagine what could be more intrusive and more destructive to the employer-employee relationship than requiring employees to forfeit their bodily autonomy in the name of maintaining their livelihood,” he wrote.https://t.co/K4tKyiXUf9

— Twila Brase, RN, Author, C19 Quick Reference Guide (@twilabrase) June 3, 2022

In a victory for Local 49, a Ramsey County judge ruled yesterday that the city of St. Paul engaged in an unfair labor practice by unilaterally implementing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for employees without negotiating with their union representatives.https://t.co/GDqIPgpLqr pic.twitter.com/KCgXc600dM

— IUOE Local 49 (@49Local) June 3, 2022

From Pioneer Press:

The firefighters’ lawsuit noted that the city didn’t negotiate with the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 21 before making “a unilateral change to the terms and conditions” of employment for Local 21 members.

In his ruling, Ramsey County Judge Leonardo Castro noted that the city didn’t engage in bad faith by implementing the vaccination policy, but nevertheless enacted an unfair labor policy.

“The City was faced with the height of a pandemic and based its actions upon what it believed to be in the best interest of the health and safety of its employees and the public,” Castro wrote in the ruling. “There was no malice, conspiracy or employee targeting involved.”

The city did engage in discussions of the policy with union representatives, Castro wrote, though not in formal bargaining.

For an issue such as injecting your own body with a foreign substance versus losing your job, he reasoned, that’s not enough.

St. Paul’s policy doesn’t include an option for employees to opt out of vaccination by agreeing to regular COVID-19 testing, the report noted.