The Court of Appeals sent the case back down to the district court for further proceedings after determining that all plaintiffs adequately pled a conflict between their Christian religious beliefs and Mayo Clinic’s Covid-19 policy. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended in 1972) requires employers to exempt sincere religious objectors from generally applicable, neutral employment rules, unless granting the exemption would work an “undue hardship.” In the case of Ringhofer v. Mayo Clinic, Ambulance, the plaintiffs sought religious accommodations for the vaccination requirement citing their Christian religious beliefs. The district court erred in rejecting their claims by focusing on specific parts of the complaints to rule the anti-vaccine beliefs as “personal” or “medical” without considering the complaints as a whole. The Court of Appeals emphasized that the guarantee of the Free Exercise Clause is not limited to beliefs shared by all members of a religious sect, and that religious beliefs do not have to be logical or endorsed by a large religious group to be protected under Title VII.
- Kiel, Miller, and Ringhofer adequately identified religious views they believe conflict with taking the Covid-19 vaccine based on their Christian beliefs.
- Rubin and Ihde plausibly pled religious beliefs that conflicted with the testing requirement based on their beliefs about their body being a temple and their faith in their Creator.
All plaintiffs have satisfied their burden at this stage by connecting their objections to specific religious principles. The case will now proceed for further proceedings at the district court level.
Those proceedings could involve a jury trial to determine if the plaintiffs’ objections were truly sincere and religious as a matter of fact. Additionally, there may be legal decisions or factual determinations regarding whether granting the plaintiffs an exemption from vaccination and testing requirements would create an “undue hardship” for the employer. The Court has defined “undue hardship” as significant increased costs in relation to the operation of its specific business.
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