Bottom Line
In Maple Leaf Foods Inc., Brantford Facility and UFCW, Local
175, 2022 CanLII 28285 (ON LA), Arbitrator Chauvin
upheld a mandatory vaccination policy (the "Policy")
after finding it to be reasonable and enforceable. The Policy
required all employees to be vaccinated by March 31, 2022, barring
any exemptions based on human rights grounds. Unvaccinated,
non-exempt employees would be placed on an unpaid leave of absence
and could be subject to discipline.
Background Facts
Maple Leaf Foods (the "Company") operates food
processing, production, and distribution facilities across North
America. The United Food and Commercial Workers (the
"Union") represents 120 employees in the Company's
Brantford poultry processing plant. Members of the Union's
bargaining unit work closely together processing, weighing, and
packaging product for consumer consumption.