House Republicans push for vaccine exemptions
MONTGOMERY, Alabama (AP) – The Alabama House of Representatives on Thursday proposed legislation to prevent companies from laying off workers who claim religious or medical exemption from COVID-19 vaccination warrants – lawmakers taking points opposing views on whether the measure would be a “job killer” or an employment protection measure.
Republicans said they were responding to an outcry from voters fearing they would lose their jobs because they did not get their shots. Democrats said the bill would put both federal contractors in the state and public health at risk for the sole purpose of scoring political points.
The House of Representatives voted 67-23 for the bill in a vote that is in line with the parties. The bill now goes to a conference committee.
The Republican-sponsored bill states that employers must exempt employees from the COVID-19 vaccination requirement if the worker returns a new standardized state form to request a religious or medical exemption. Employees checked a box for the reason they could not get the vaccine, such as a religious reason, certain qualifying medical conditions, or a referral signed by a healthcare professional. There would be no other requirement to prove the exemption.
“They fear losing the jobs they’ve had for 20 years, very good jobs they had with federal contractors,” Republican Representative Mike Jones of Andalusia said, adding that some people are “really scared vaccine “.
Jones said they are trying to find a way to protect employees who are afraid of getting vaccinated without harming federal contractors who are facing a federal mandate to have their staff vaccinated. But House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels argued the bill would do just that by interfering with a company’s ability to comply with the federal mandate.
“I’m angry right now because it’s a job killer,” Daniels said, claiming that federal contractors provide many jobs in and around his district of Huntsville.
“You cannot say that you are business friendly by bringing this bill forward.”
Other Democrats have said the GOP proposal will create a wide open portal for people to apply for a vaccination mandate exemption without really having a valid reason.
“You know and I know, everyone, even atheists, everyone is going to come and say it’s because of their religious beliefs,” Democratic Representative Pebblin Warren said.
The bill provides for several medical conditions, such as taking an anticoagulant, which would exempt an employee from the mandate of vaccination. There would be no requirement to provide proof of condition or religious belief. An employee who was denied an exemption could appeal to the state Department of Labor.
The proposal is a derogation from existing law that allows companies to lay off workers at will. The bill clarifies that it would not change an employer’s ability to fire an employee for reasons other than the employee’s COVID-19 vaccination status.
The legislation comes as Republican leaders in many states try to find ways to resist the federal vaccine mandate they call an assault on personal freedoms. The bill drew opposition from a group of businesses, which said it would put federal contractors in a dead end.
Alabama has recorded at least 15,629 COVID-19-related deaths and has the second-highest per capita death rate from COVID-19 among states, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University.
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