A Toronto lawyer has taken up the cause of 20 former City of Windsor workers who lost their jobs because they didn't comply with its COVID-19 vaccine policy.
The lawsuit, filed by Courtney Betty, alleges the city acted outside provincial guidelines and violated the plaintiffs' constitutional rights.
"The plaintiffs all made the very difficult decision that compliance with the City of Windsor's vaccination policy would have a negative impact on their health, religious beliefs, and life-long personal beliefs," read a Statement of Claim obtained by WindsorNewsToday.ca by Betty's law office. "The policy was capricious, bore no relationship to stated objectives, and was overly broad in a manner outside the jurisdiction of the City of Windsor."
The employees are all described in the Statement of Claim as "frontline workers and hailed heroes."
They include four firefighters, a manager in the Forestry and Natural Areas Department, EnWin Utilities workers, a personal support worker at Huron Lodge, and analysts in multiple city departments.
One said they lost their home and their marriage after their firing. Another claims they and their family have been living in a recreational vehicle. Three asked for accommodation under the city's policy, and one refused to disclose their vaccination status. Almost all were long-term employees.
A total of 104 city employees, 43 full-time and 61 part-time, were terminated in early January for non-compliance with the COVID-19 vaccination policy.
Windsor City council adopted the policy in September 2021 and gave staff until November to provide proof of vaccination or request an exemption based on medical or human rights reasons.
They had until January 4 to prove they had the first dose and February 1 to submit documentation they had the second. The city announced plans to fill those vacancies just days after the deadline.
Ultimately, 97.1 per cent of the more than 3,500 workers were compliant.
The lawsuit claims the city didn't have to fire the workers and seeks damages for a long list of reasons, including loss of employment, loss of income, loss of reputation, loss of sleep, loss of trust in others, homelessness, and marital breakdown.
It seeks $1,000 a day for each employee retroactive to March 1 and until they get their jobs back and $50,000 for each plaintiff for mental distress.
