are vaccine religious exemption letters confidential

Are vaccine religious exemption letters confidential how to#

This process is referred to as the interactive process and involves a good-faith effort by the employer and the employee to discuss the employee’s specific circumstances. Upon learning of the possible need for a reasonable accommodation, employers should engage in a process in which the employee, his or her health care provider or religious leader, and the employer share information about the nature of the disability or religious belief and the limitations on receiving an employer-required vaccination. Requests for accommodation due to a disability or religious belief should be further reviewed following the steps below.

Are vaccine religious exemption letters confidential how to#

Managers and supervisors should understand how to recognize a request for accommodation and who to relay the information to within the company. A request for exemption due to a personal preference not to receive a vaccine is not protected by law, and the employer should reiterate the company policy and the consequences for not complying with the vaccination mandate.Įmployees need not use any particular verbiage when requesting an accommodation. Step 3: Review Requests for Exemption from the Vaccine RequirementĮmployee requests for exemption from the vaccination requirement should be reviewed to determine if the request falls under the ADA or Title VII obligations for the employer to consider accommodation. Organizations should implement or review policies and procedures for handling requests for medical and religious accommodations.Įxisting job descriptions should also be reviewed to confirm they include all aspects of the job and include any requirements for mandatory vaccinations. Step 2: Ensure That a Policy and Procedure Exist for Handling Accommodation Requests Federal government employers are also covered by Title VII however, for disability accommodations, federal government employers must comply with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 instead of the ADA, although the protections are very similar.

Step 1: Determine Whether the Employer Is Covered by the ADA and Title VIIĪll employers, including state and local government employers, with 15 or more employees are covered under the ADA and Title VII. This guide takes you through the steps to handle a current employee’s accommodation request to be exempt from the employer’s vaccination requirement(s). A sincerely held religious belief can include an employee’s religious-based objection to vaccinations. Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation to qualified applicants and employees with a disability unless the employer can demonstrate that doing so creates an undue hardship to the employer or poses a direct threat to the safety of the employee or others in the workplace.Įmployers also have an obligation to accommodate an employee’s sincerely held religious belief under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (Title VII), unless the accommodation creates an undue hardship. Employers who want to require employees to take the vaccine should know that federal law allows employees to ask to be exempted from the requirement due to medical or religious reasons. Employer-required flu vaccinations have been a common practice for years and the COVID-19 pandemic further brought mandatory vaccination into the spotlight. Many employers require employees to receive vaccinations to reduce the spread of communicable diseases in the workplace.