Employers generally must explore reasonable accommodations for employees who refuse to get vaccinated against the coronavirus based on a sincerely held religious belief—but objections based on personal or political views are not protected under federal anti-discrimination laws.
“Many employers who implemented vaccine mandates have faced a tidal wave of requests for religious exemptions,” noted Michael Puma, an attorney with Morgan Lewis in Philadelphia. “The sheer volume of requests combined with the difficulty of separating protected versus unprotected claims, all while respecting an employee’s stated beliefs, has been a significant challenge for human resources and legal departments.”
