In January of 2023 over a hundred City of Windsor employees were terminated for failing to comply with the employer’s vaccination policy.

The attached CBC article reports that the majority of these individuals have since returned to work with the removal of the policy.

A Class Action lawsuit has been brought against the city challenging the constitutionality of these measures. The plaintiffs are seeking financial compensation.

Unfortunately, because they were fired with cause they were ineligible for employment insurance.

What we are currently seeing is the long-lasting residual effects of the pandemic. There are multiple other lawsuits occurring simultaneously throughout Canada. Members of Police on Guard are also involved in similar court actions.

These problems are the result of our elected officials being able to operate with impunity during a perceived crisis. The rule of law and our Charter seemed to be suspended for a period of time and it is the courts purview to maintain accountability within our democratic system.

Optimistically the courts will recognize our fundamental human rights and rule that these policies violated the Charter.

Pessimistically these actions may be dismissed. Our levels of government don’t have the monetary ability to pay out thousands of plaintiffs, inflation and debt are high, and it is apparent that the health care system needs overhauled. Add to that statistical increases in violent crime, mental health issues, substance abuse and it becomes obvious that politicians want to put their culpability for the pandemic response in the rear view. It’s a wait and see to find out where the courts land on these issues.

With frustrations mounting time will tell what type of society we currently live in. Canada has recently fell to 16th on the World Freedom index. Some positive court rulings could reaffirm the rights of the individual and reverse that downward trend.

To read the CBC article, click here