VIA Rail violated the Canada Labour Code when it terminated the employment of a locomotive engineer in January 2022 because of his vaccination status, a federal arbitrator has ruled.
Arbitrator Graham Clarke ruled that VIA Rail, a Crown corporation, didn’t have “just and sufficient cause” to fire the engineer for refusing to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
Louison Tessier had been an engineer with railway for nearly 20 years when he was dismissed without pay on Jan. 24, 2022, for not having a COVID shot.
The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, which represented Tessier, challenged VIA’s decision shortly after, citing the union’s contract that said no member could be fired “without a fair and impartial hearing.”…