As previously discussed in this blog, provided they are mindful of the reasonable accommodation requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Ohio’s analogous anti-discrimination statues, an Ohio employer may require COVID vaccination as a condition of employment.
A few weeks back, the Ohio House Health Committee heard testimony from a number of “experts” as it considered a proposed bill that would prohibit employer mandated vaccination (for any disease), forbid requiring unvaccinated employees to wear masks, and create a cause of action against any employer who did so.
Undeterred by the fact that there weren’t enough unreasonable legislators to get the proposed anti-vaccination bill out of committee, the Ohio House has tacked a few of that bill’s provisions onto an Ohio Senate spending bill. The amendments to the spending bill would prohibit requiring employees to get a vaccine that doesn’t have full FDA approval. The bill now goes back to the Senate and, if the changes are adopted, to the Governor, who has indicated he’ll veto.
Given that we’re months away from full FDA approval, it may come down to whether the three-fifths of Ohio legislature required to override a veto were swayed by testimony that vaccines are “magnetizing” people.
Meanwhile, in Rational Ohio, state Senators Nickie Antonio and Michael Rulli have reintroduced the Ohio Fairness Act. The Act, which has been introduced ten times already, would finally prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression in Ohio workplaces, public accommodations, and housing.
Earlier this week, Out Leadership, a national LGBTQ+ business advisory firm, ranked Ohio 40th in its 2021 State LGBTQ+ Business Climate Index, down four spots from its already shameful 2020 ranking. So, as it turns out, maybe there is just the one Ohio.