United Airlines workers with religious objections to COVID-19 vaccine placed on unpaid leave

the extension of the mask mandate now until at least january for airline passengers in the U. S. Uh was not surprising. Certainly not to me and I don't think to most people, I think we saw this coming and all things considered with the situation right now that's that's to be expected. Okay, so this will have an effect on travel on how many people get on a plane and to where they're going but maybe not in the ways that people expect the criteria people use as far as are they going to travel or not travel doesn't come down to do I have to wear a mask or not wear a mask? It's it's more about where are people going and what are the rules in the regions and countries that people are going to And those rules right now are just kind of a mess. There doesn't seem to be any sort of push to standardize entry rules into countries and regions. Some countries you only need the vaccination card, some you need a test and a vaccination card. Some you need quarantine periods and it's not necessarily reflective of cases in those countries. It seems pretty random and sometimes just kind of crazy. And I think there definitely needs to be a more uniform standardized approach as far as how people can get into which countries. So one of the big issues for airlines now is how this mayor may not affect incidents of so called air rage, which we've been seeing on the increase over the past several months. That is passengers becoming belligerent and violent on board aircraft towards crew members and other passengers. What's been driving that is, is a multitude of factors, but one of them definitely has been frustration over mask wearing. I certainly understand that for a lot of people, the extension of the mask protocols, together with all of the other stuff that we're dealing with when we go on a trip now is frustrating and it makes people tense and, and, and nervous and sometimes angry. Um, it's important to not let that boil over into becoming belligerent or violent on a plane. Um, in a lot of cases, to those incidents are related to alcohol use or substance abuse. It's a big complicated topic, but this does feed into that.

United Airlines told employees that they will be placed on indefinite unpaid leave if they refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons.The company's vaccine mandate is much tougher than those imposed by many other companies, or the ones announced by President Joe Biden Thursday. The federal mandate, and many already announced at other companies, give employees a choice between getting vaccinated or getting weekly COVID-19 tests. At United, it's essentially vaccination or termination.Although United is granting accommodations for employees who have a valid medical or religious reason not to get vaccinated, it disclosed this week there would be costs for those who cite their religious belief as a reason not to be vaccinated.Video above: TSA extends mask rule for airline passengers"Given our focus on safety and the steep increases in COVID infections, hospitalizations and deaths, all employees whose request is approved will be placed on temporary, unpaid personal leave on October 2 while specific safety measures for unvaccinated employees are instituted," said United's memo to employees. "Given the dire statistics...we can no longer allow unvaccinated people back into the workplace until we better understand how they might interact with our customers and their vaccinated co-workers."United said a decision on whether to accept an employee's religious objections to vaccination would be made on a case-by-case basis."We are working hard to ensure the safety of our employees and customers while accommodating those employees who have sincerely held religious beliefs," said the airline's statement.United has 67,000 active U.S. employees covered by the mandate. Virtually all non-management employees are represented by a union.The major unions at United did not object to the airline's original statement on a vaccine mandate in August. It was unclear whether most of the unions are ready to challenge the airline's stance on unpaid leave for their members with religious objections to the vaccine. Some did not respond to requests for comment on Friday."We are reviewing our legal and contractual options to support these pilots," said the Air Line Pilots Association in response to a question.However, the Teamsters union, which represents more than 6,000 mechanics at the airline, said simply that it "does not accept United Airlines' position on this issue."The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has advised employers they can impose vaccine mandates on their employees. But the agency also said that claims of religious objections should typically not be disputed by an employer and should be "generally presumed or easily established."Still, no major religious denomination is on record opposing vaccination, despite some individual clergy members who have raised objections.Even the Christian Science Church, which teaches its members to use prayer rather than medicine to maintain their health in most cases, has not come out with a prohibition on the use of the vaccine by its adherents. Its statement calls for members to have "respect for public health authorities and conscientious obedience to the laws of the land, including those requiring vaccination."United employees placed on unpaid leave do not receive other benefits, such as medical insurance, although they can maintain coverage by paying the full premium themselves under Cobra. They do maintain their seniority with the company during the unpaid leave. And seniority is a major factor in determining employees' work conditions, compensation and hours of work in the airline industry.United employees who have a medical reason for not getting vaccinated will be placed on paid leave, said United spokesperson Leslie Scott.-- CNN's Kwegyirba Croffie contributed to this report

United Airlines told employees that they will be placed on indefinite unpaid leave if they refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons.

The company's vaccine mandate is much tougher than those imposed by many other companies, or the ones announced by President Joe Biden Thursday. The federal mandate, and many already announced at other companies, give employees a choice between getting vaccinated or getting weekly COVID-19 tests. At United, it's essentially vaccination or termination.

Although United is granting accommodations for employees who have a valid medical or religious reason not to get vaccinated, it disclosed this week there would be costs for those who cite their religious belief as a reason not to be vaccinated.

Video above: TSA extends mask rule for airline passengers

"Given our focus on safety and the steep increases in COVID infections, hospitalizations and deaths, all employees whose request is approved will be placed on temporary, unpaid personal leave on October 2 while specific safety measures for unvaccinated employees are instituted," said United's memo to employees. "Given the dire statistics...we can no longer allow unvaccinated people back into the workplace until we better understand how they might interact with our customers and their vaccinated co-workers."

United said a decision on whether to accept an employee's religious objections to vaccination would be made on a case-by-case basis.

"We are working hard to ensure the safety of our employees and customers while accommodating those employees who have sincerely held religious beliefs," said the airline's statement.

United has 67,000 active U.S. employees covered by the mandate. Virtually all non-management employees are represented by a union.

The major unions at United did not object to the airline's original statement on a vaccine mandate in August. It was unclear whether most of the unions are ready to challenge the airline's stance on unpaid leave for their members with religious objections to the vaccine. Some did not respond to requests for comment on Friday.

"We are reviewing our legal and contractual options to support these pilots," said the Air Line Pilots Association in response to a question.

However, the Teamsters union, which represents more than 6,000 mechanics at the airline, said simply that it "does not accept United Airlines' position on this issue."

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has advised employers they can on their employees. But the agency also said that claims of religious objections should typically not be disputed by an employer and should be "."

Still, is on record opposing vaccination, despite some individual clergy members who have raised objections.

Even the , which teaches its members to use prayer rather than medicine to maintain their health in most cases, has not come out with a prohibition on the use of the vaccine by its adherents. Its statement calls for members to have "respect for public health authorities and conscientious obedience to the laws of the land, including those requiring vaccination."

United employees placed on unpaid leave do not receive other benefits, such as medical insurance, although they can maintain coverage by paying the full premium themselves under Cobra. They do maintain their seniority with the company during the unpaid leave. And seniority is a major factor in determining employees' work conditions, compensation and hours of work in the airline industry.

United employees who have a medical reason for not getting vaccinated will be placed on paid leave, said United spokesperson Leslie Scott.

-- CNN's Kwegyirba Croffie contributed to this report

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