FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Jan 3

Start Of 2022 Not All That Different From Start of 2021

by bcurry

Well, the start of a New Year has arrived, but it doesn’t feel all that much different from the start of last year.  We are now into another wave of the COVID pandemic, much like we were last year with Delta on the horizon.  Many celebratory and sporting events were either cancelled or reduced with restrictions in place; airline travel has been seriously affected by new cases of the more highly infectious Omicron variant; cruise ships are returning to ports as a result of cases on board; and businesses have had to keep their people working from home wherever possible.  The biggest difference between the two years is the fact that we now have millions of people vaccinated against the coronavirus.  We also have better medical treatments for those who do become infected.  However, hospitals and the health care system are once again being strained by the sudden influx of new cases globally and locally.  COVID continues to affect supply chains around the world, causing serious shortages in many goods and foods.

Unfortunately, the politicization of health measures, including masking and social distancing, is still out there.  However, the big difference is that now the vaccination policies of governments and businesses have come increasingly under attack by the anti-vaxxers.  Even local public health providers have come under attack, many unfortunately being personally threatened and harassed by protesting groups and individuals.  Yes, pandemic fatigue has grown after over two years of combating this virus.  As a result, some states have actually removed certain related health measures and refused to endorse mandated vaccinations within essential services.  Like before, the U.S. appears to be seriously split down the middle, often between Republican and Democratic state legislators and governors.  In some cases, the politicians have taken over from public health officials and are calling the shots, despite record new COVID-related cases and the increasing strain on health care resources within their jurisdictions.  This split is less of a concern in Canada where provincial and territorial governments have relied heavily on public health officials for their expert advice when it comes to setting policies and distributing resources, claiming they are closely following the science involved.

The introduction of new COVID variants and the lack of progress in vaccinating populations in lesser developed countries have ensured that the pandemic remains a global concern.  Let’s be clear, until countries like the U.S. and Canada do more to help out countries in Africa, Asia and Central and South America, the war against COVID will continue for some time.  We need to get over our internal divisions and quickly work together to get this virus under control domestically, while simultaneously working with international organizations and other industrialized countries to speed up assistance to Third World countries.  While the beginning of 2021 offered hope with the amazing advent of new vaccines to protect us from this disease, that same hope needs to be passed along to people in other countries.  Only then can we really hope that 2022 will be a happier and healthier year than 2021 was.

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Dec 31

After Battle With Omicron Variant, We May Be Nearing War’s End With COVID-19

by bcurry

Yes, we are seeing new daily case records being broken since the start of the pandemic.  However, the latest variant, Omicron, may actually be a harbinger of better things to come.  While more highly contagious than the Delta variant, it has shown signs of not being as severe in symptoms as the Delta variant.  Some experts now believe, based on evidence from the U.K. and South Africa, the expected peaking of the surge would eventually lead to a stage where the virus becomes ‘endemic’.  By endemic, one means that this coronavirus would become a less major event, similar to the seasonal flu virus and could be dealt with and controlled through annual flu shots and medical treatments.  Moreover, we would simply have to live with the COVID virus as we now do with other coronavirus, including the common cold virus.  With the latest infections and availability of vaccines, experts now believe that we would be optimistically back to some form of normalcy by the spring at the earliest.

The predictions do bring hope for the New Year once we get through this current fourth wave, expected to peak in mid-January.  However, in the meantime, most of us will have to once again endure certain restrictions and health measures needed to combat the spread of Omicron in the immediate future.  Yes, we have an increasing degree of ‘pandemic fatigue’, but we need to not let our guard down.  We need to respect these restrictions in order to once again mitigate the terrible impact that the pandemic has had on hospitals and long-term care residences.  Since Omicron is so highly contagious, many more health care workers will be affected and test positive, thus leaving fewer workers to care for COVID patients.  After battling this disease over the last two years, front line workers are truly exhausted and demoralized.  Some have even left the health care profession.  In order to help them, some health experts are proclaiming that there is currently a need to overreact rather than underreact.   

Eventually, in order to end this global pandemic, world organizations and industrialized countries will have to ensure that vaccinations are made available to all Third World countries A.S.A.P.  This is no longer an option, but is a necessity to prevent future COVID variants and their spread.  In addition, we need to stop politicizing government imposed restrictions and health measures, including masking and social distancing.  We are in a health crisis and health care systems could collapse under the strain.  British Columbia’s Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, said in a recent CBC interview that: “ … the virus will eventually become endemic as the season shifts to spring, more children get vaccinated and the spread of infection slows.”  However, she also said that there are still many unknowns ahead.

In conclusion, if we are going to win this war, all of us have to play our parts.  Let’s think about our communities, our seniors and our children.  This way, perhaps we will have a healthier and safer New Year.

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Dec 20

With Omicron, Are We Losing The War With COVID-19?

by bcurry

Back in February of this year, I blogged about COVID-19 (Why Hasn’t COVID Rapid Testing Been Done in Canada? | FROLITICKS (wordpress.com)).  I noted at that time that: “We are in a veritable war to contain the spread of COVID-19.  One would think that we would employ all the weapons at our disposal to combat spread of this virus.”  This was all before the Delta variant, and now the newer, more contagious Omicron variant.  Back then we had no vaccines for COVID, and relied heavily on various forms of strategic lockdowns and individual prevention measures in the form of masking and physical distancing.  We put restrictions on the numbers of people who could gather in their homes or who could visit hospitals and long-term care residences.  We recognized that seniors were the most vulnerable as evidenced by the rate of hospitalizations and deaths among the elderly.  Schools were closed to students and more on-line learning was introduced.  Various testing for COVID was introduced, including rapid antigen tests.  A collaborated attack, led by governments and scientists, was implemented to develop vaccines to combat the coronavirus.  Having successfully developed COVID vaccines, a mass inoculation was undertaken to vaccinate as many adults (18 and over) as possible.  In Canada, this resulted in over 75 percent of the adult population being vaccinated by last summer.  In the U.S., due to greater vaccine hesitancy, about 60 percent of adults are vaccinated.  As of November, we began vaccinating children (5 to 11 years), hoping that we could keep kids in schools and prevent the spread.  Both American and Canadian governments introduced mandated vaccination policies, not only for government employees, but also for federally-regulated industries.

Slowly with the majority of Canadians and Americans being fully vaccinated, restrictions on businesses and schools were lifted by the spring.  Life seemed to be happily moving back to normalcy, as a number of battles with COVID had been won and hospitalizations had plateaued.  Then the Omicron variant arrived.  Having been seriously hit by the predominant Delta variant since last spring, the Omicron variant is now reportedly about four times more infectious than the Delta variant.  What is more disconcerting is the evidence that COVID vaccines may not be as effective against Omicron, with many more breakthrough cases among vaccinated persons.  For the unvaccinated, Omicron may be just as serious as the Delta variant resulting in more hospitalizations and deaths among the infected.

In Canada and the U.S., as in Europe, Australia and elsewhere, new positive cases for COVID are exponentially increasing as a result of Omicron.  Reports are now indicating that a new wave is hitting the hospitality, retail, entertainment and travel industries.  As for restaurants who were hoping for an upsurge in business prior and during the Christmas season, many are being forced to close due to workers testing positive for COVID and customers who are cancelling their dining plans out of fear of exposure to Omicron.  The problem is that many people have yet to get vaccinated, risking getting seriously ill as a result.  In one example, I was amazed to read that Walmart, which had mandated vaccines mainly for its corporate staff, had not done the same for front-line workers.  According to data compiled by the Shift Project at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, only 66 percent of Walmart’s roughly 1.6 million U.S. employees are vaccinated.  Like in numerous businesses, the numbers of unvaccinated workers remains a serious problem, more so now with the emergence of the Omicron variant.

While we have won a number of battles with COVID-19, the war is not over.  However, we have been carrying on as if this war was over.  Large sporting events took place with full crowds in attendance, many without masks.  Fortunately, being fully vaccinated was a requirement for participation in such venues.  Unfortunately, medical experts are pushing us to get booster shots for those already vaccinated in order to deal with Omicron.  This still leaves millions of Canadians and Americans, including the majority of our children, who have not yet been vaccinated for COVID-19.  Should the case loads increase as projected, we can expect that more severe restrictions may have to be put in place, including lockdowns which none of us really want.  If we choose not to consider such measures, it could lead to us to losing the global war with COVID.  Or perhaps I’m just being overly pessimistic and alarmist!

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Dec 19

As We Deal With Another COVID Wave, Impact on Young People May Be Worst

by bcurry

North Americans, like many others globally, are now having to cope with yet another COVID wave — this one involving the more highly contagious Omicron variant.  Once again, increased restrictive measures are being implemented to reduce peoples’ contact, especially where crowds and groups are involved.  However, what is of particular concern are those measures which are shutting down our schools, whether primary, secondary or post-secondary, due to outbreaks.  It has become evident that young people are great spreaders simply because of their exposure in schools and in communities, especially where they have yet to be vaccinated as in the case of most children under eleven years old.  Many young people unfortunately are having to revert to on-line learning, deemed a poor substitute for in-class learning.What is most disconcerting is what these measures are doing to the mental health and wellbeing of young people. 

Without the structure and routine of attending classes, researchers and teachers have noticed a significant change in behavioural patterns of young people.  Violent and inappropriate behaviours are more prevalent among primary and high school students in particular.  This has become notably visible at high school sports events, where inappropriate sexist and racist remarks have been made with respect to minority participants.  In some reported incidents, physical violence has even broken out.  Teachers have reported a noticeable increase in verbal and physical abuse towards them by students.  Promoting discipline has become a greater part of a teacher’s time in the classroom and of school administrators.

It’s not that we and especially parents are not aware of the issue, it’s just that we are having a harder time dealing with the impact of COVID and health measures.  On the one hand, there is a clear and growing physical threat to young people, with many more likely to end up being hospitalized then before.  On the other hand, there are the lockdown measures that mainly affect young people and their normal interaction with their peers.  The entire normal ‘socialization’ process has been turned upside down.  Regardless of when we return to some state of so-called ‘normalcy’, eventually the impact of COVID could be irreversible when it comes to young people, their mental health and their futures in society.

In the past, there has been a significant lack of mental health services available for and accessible to young people in most communities.  One does not have to look far for the evidence.  All one has to do is check the waiting lists for those seeking mental health services for their children.  The impact of COVID has significantly increased the urgent need for such services.  Similar to what we now have in expanded available resources in the form of ‘grief counselling’, we will need to greatly expand mental health services given the traumatic impact of the pandemic on our youth.  Governments need to begin to more fully resource these services today.  We cannot afford to wait until the pandemic is considered to be finally under some form of control.  The impact on mental health is already here!

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Dec 5

Two Top News Topics in 2021: The Global Pandemic and Climate Change

by bcurry

Anyone who has been closely following the main street news media will highlight the fact that the two most written about news topics during the past year were the global pandemic and climate change.  The main difference between these two topics is that the impact of climate change was foreseen for some time, and the global pandemic came out of nowhere.  On the one hand, the impact of COVID-19 was immediate and introduced serious economic consequences in the short-term.  On the other hand, the impact of climate change is expected to be more long-term and will affect different regions in different ways at different times.

The big news was that several vaccines were quickly developed for COVID-19 and appeared to offer an effective means to ending the pandemic, especially in the more industrialized countries.  There is however no short-term fix to tackle the consequences of climate change, including the needed reduction in greenhouse gases.  The World Health Organization (WHO) is the one primary body that can address pandemic issues for both industrialized and emerging countries.  The WHO is leading the charge to get vaccination rates up in the emerging and poorer countries.  There really is no primary international body that can speak to climate change, with individual countries having to develop their own initiatives.  The agreement coming out of the COP26 conference in November does not achieve the most ambitious goal of the 2015 Paris accord — to limit Earth’s warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels.  Instead, delegations left Glasgow with the Earth still on track to blow past that threshold, pushing toward a future of escalating weather crises and irreversible damage to the natural world.

However, the differences between industrialized and emerging countries are quite stark for the socio-economic impact of both the pandemic and climate change.  In both cases, the lesser developed countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas will suffer greater consequences from any failure to adequately address both issues.  What is common about both topics has been the extensive use of statistics by news outlets and government bodies to track such consequences, including fatalities and economic impacts.  Moreover, politicians and heads of state have had to take a back seat to climate scientists and epidemiologists when it came to the development and implementation of policies and initiatives.  For the most part, science took the lead over current and future efforts.  Repeatedly, politicians were forced to rely on the results of scientific study and research, a novelty in some countries. 

Of course, there are always the deniers and conspiracists who oppose the conclusions of scientific research as it applies to COVID-19 and climate change.  Unfortunately, among the first deniers on both issues were such political leaders as U.S. President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.  Initially, both the U.S. and Brazil had had what was arguably the worst pandemic policy response in the industrialized world.  Under both administrations, environmental laws and initiatives were negatively affected.  President Bolsonaro, who has pushed to open more of the Amazon rainforest to mining and agriculture since taking office in 2019, has been criticized at home and abroad for increased deforestation under his government.  Interestingly enough and ironically, both Presidents became sick with COVID-19 while in office.

Something tells me that by this time next year, both of these major issues will continue to dominate the global news.  There are still further economic, social and political consequences that will attributed to these two issues.  The pandemic most likely and hopefully will evolve into a more localized endemic problem.  More extreme weather will continue to plague several regions of the world, including in the U.S. and Canada.  Unless there is the unleashing of a Third World War, the headlines will no doubt continue to focus on the issues surrounding climate change and COVID-19.

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Nov 26

When It Comes to COVID-19, We’re Not Out of the Woods Yet

by bcurry

Global health leaders are urging caution as the holiday season gets underway, pointing to a 23% spike in coronavirus cases across the Americas in the past week, a surge that follows similar spikes in Europe.  In the U.S., new daily reported cases have increased 8% in the past week, and deaths have grown 9%, according to tracking by the Washington Post.  The U.S. is closing in on a total of 800,000 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.  In Canada, compared with the previous two weeks, there was a 5% increase as of November 24th in new confirmed cases recorded over the past two weeks.  Some states and provinces have higher numbers of COVID-related hospitalizations and deaths than others.  Again, over ninety percent of those hospitalized are among the unvaccinated in both countries.

What one has to understand is that these horrific numbers have occurred even before the end of the festive season and the end of this year.  No one can actually determine when Americans and Canadians will arrive at what is called “herd immunity”.  Experts are now stating that we may need to reach over 90 percent in full vaccination rates to do so.  This includes the vaccination of children aged five to eleven which has just begun in both countries and will not be completed until early in 2022.  Even then, there is still a fair amount of vaccine hesitancy among certain groups, especially when it comes to vaccinating younger children.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is now assessing the emergence of a new COVID variant in South Africa and several other African countries.  The concerns are such that the United Kingdom has banned flights from those countries, and it can be expected that other European Union (EU) countries and the U.S. and Canada will follow suit.  Indeed, COVID outbreaks have occurred in most EU countries, leading some like Austria to re-introduce a full lockdown of the country. 

Throughout Central and South America, the vaccination rates have remained low, especially in rural remote regions of each country.  For example, as of November 25th, Mexico has a full vaccination rate for the coronavirus of about 49%, the majority of which is in and around Mexico City.  The Washington Post notes that: “Containment measures in Latin America and the Caribbean have been uneven and largely lackadaisical as governments have had to grapple with financial devastation and poor health infrastructure, and have long wanted to jump-start the languishing economies.”  Moreover, countries like Mexico are open for business, especially tourism, much of which comes from the U.S. and Canada.

The WHO is expressing concern about a “false sense of security” when it comes to the lifting of COVID prevention measures and the apparent increased complacency among people.  Sorry folks, we are nowhere near being back to “normal”!  Epidemiologists, health and other science experts agree that there will be a fourth wave in both Canada and the U.S. early next year.  We can only hope that, with increased vaccination rates and control of any new variants, both countries can eventually arrive at a sense of normalcy sometime in 2022.  Until then, we are not out of the woods when it comes to this global pandemic.

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Nov 22

Mandated COVID Vaccination May Temporarily Affected Rights, But Statistics Offer Justification

by bcurry

After more than a year and a half of the pandemic, one has to question the rationale of anti-vaxxers and libertarian spokespeople over their stance on COVID vaccination and other government-imposed restrictions.  When it comes to protecting public health and our communities, the amassed data from legitimate sources appears to me to objectively justify most of these preventive measures.  There is no attempt to cherry pick the data in order to defend one’s position in support of these measures, no matter how draconian one thinks they are.  Take the data coming out of the U.S.

According to data by Johns Hopkins University, COVID-19 has killed over 750,000 Americans, including about 50,000 announced since the start of October, and infected about 46.5 million in the U.S. since last January.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that as many as 1 in 3 people in the U.S. have been infected, more than three times the official count.  For the month of June, the coronavirus was responsible for 337 deaths a day.  For comparison, the historic average deaths from gunshots, car crashes and complications from the flu add up to 306 a day.  According to data from a CDC study released in October, men overall were 1.6 times likelier to die of the disease caused by the coronavirus than women.  The study further indicated that men aged between 45 and 64 were more than 1.8 times likelier to die of a disease caused by COVID-19.  In addition, the study concluded that for the most vulnerable groups, Blacks and Hispanics or Latinos, death rates are six times higher than those for white people.

Since the start of November, recorded coronavirus case levels have remained stable, with around 70,000 new infections reported daily.  Thanks to the vaccine, hospitalizations and deaths have continued to decline.  It is estimated that seventy percent of American adults are now fully vaccinated.  In July of this year, the CDC reported on preliminary data from several states over the previous months which suggested that 99.5 percent of deaths from COVID-19 in the U.S. were among unvaccinated people.  According to a recent analysis published by researchers at Yale University and the Commonwealth Fund, COVID-19 vaccinations in the U.S. have already prevented roughly 279,000 deaths and 1.25 million hospitalizations.  The same report goes on to suggest that without vaccines, COVID-19 would still be topping cancer and heart disease as the leading cause of death in the U.S. today.

All of the above are not just statistics, for each number unfortunately represents individuals affected directly by COVID-19.  One can argue about measures taken to prevent further new cases, hospitalizations and associated deaths, but one cannot dispute the facts.  As a former analyst, data and information gathered from reputable and verifiable sources is one’s bread and butter.  By analyzing the data, one begins to build an inventory of knowledge about the issues being researched.  This analysis provides the basis for understanding the key facts surrounding those issues, and in turn helps decision makers to develop the appropriate policies.  Being a mostly objective process, one always attempts to limit the impact of any subjective values and prevent “confirmation bias”.  Moreover, verifiable and objective data doesn’t lie.

There will always be those who will attack public health policies for a variety of reasons, including arguments based on libertarian values.  However, they cannot dispute the continuing realities of the real human impact caused by the pandemic.  We can only measure whether the negative impacts are being reduced or increased by our policies.  This is why decision makers need reliable, valid and consistent data as soon as it becomes available in order to justify their policies.  In the case of COVID-19, such data now exists.

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Nov 8

Irrationality Drives Unvaccinated Beliefs About COVID-19

by bcurry

Every day one sees articles or hears about unvaccinated men, women and children who are tragically and needlessly dying from COVID-19.  Some of the stories even involve people who have spoken out against COVID vaccines.  According to data by Johns Hopkins University, the sad part is that COVID-19 has now killed over 750,000 Americans and infected about 46.5 million since last January.  However, those numbers fail to paint a complete picture, since testing scarcity and delays likely left many COVID-19 cases and deaths undiagnosed, especially during the outbreak’s early stages.  In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that as many as 1 in 3 people in the U.S. have been infected, more than three times the official count.

Recently, we’ve seen articles about well-known athletes, entertainment celebrities, politicians, etc., etc. who have spoken out against vaccines for a whole number of irrational reasons.  Unfortunately, they have ignored the expert advice of scientists and physicians in favour of becoming “Facebook doctors” and relying instead of the associated reams of misinformation about COVID vaccines.  In general, ‘fear’ is a powerful emotion.  Then there are those who have simply ‘politicized’ the anti-vaccine movement for their own reasons, often stressing libertarian values over the health concerns of the community.  Simply put, being vaccinated and following certain protective measures will help prevent the spread of COVID and the emergence of new more dangerous variants.

The fact is that where more and more people have been vaccinated, coronavirus case levels have remained stable in recent weeks, and hospitalizations and deaths have generally continued to decline in some parts of the country, notably across the South and Northeast.  Still, we are looking at around 70,000 new infections reported daily in the U.S.  Infection levels continue to climb steadily in such states as California, Colorado and New Mexico.  Despite the optimism of some people, this pandemic is far from over.  Fortunately, as of this November, seventy percent of American adults are now fully vaccinated, and COVID vaccines for children have been or will most likely be approved by the CDC.  We are slowly on a road to potential recovery and so-called ‘normalcy’.

‘Vaccine hesitancy’ is now confronting the recent introduction of mandatory vaccine requirements in the U.S.  Interestingly enough, nearing President Biden’s coronavirus vaccine deadline, thousands of federal workers are apparently seeking religious exemptions to avoid the shots.  Moreover, the federal government will have to balance the right to religious freedom against the goal of creating safe workplaces for 2.1 million civilian employees.  However, it’s bizarre how one is determined to qualify for an exemption base on one’s religious beliefs.  Apparently, employees do not need to provide proof of a religious conviction to justify a claim, but must only attest that are “sincerely held.”  Some managers are even asking whether employees, despite their religious beliefs, received vaccines for other illnesses such as the flu, measles, shingles, tetanus or invasive pneumococcal disease.  Managers will soon assume the thorny role of having to decide whether someone is sincere or requesting such an exemption for political reasons.  In a directive issued in January, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said the employee’s objections do not have to stem from an organized religion and can be beliefs that are new, uncommon or “seem illogical or unreasonable to others.”  Talk about muddying the waters!

A viewpoint or position is deemed irrational if it’s based on evidence judged not to be logical or reasonable.  I have yet to find any arguments that would convince me that opposing COVID vaccinations can be validated, even those supposedly based on one’s religious beliefs.  Most of those in opposition are basing their beliefs on information they’ve obtained in support of their position.  This is referred to by psychologists as a clear sign of ‘confirmation bias’.  They simply ignore information and data which clearly supports the urgent need for as many people as possible in a community to be immunized against this dreadful disease.

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Oct 8

Emergence of Mandated Vaccination for Workers in Certain Sectors in Canada

by bcurry

Back in July, I blogged briefly about the issues of Mandatory COVID Vaccinations vs. Civil Liberties in North America  and To Mandate COVID Vaccinations or Not?.  At the time, these issues had more to do with colleges mandating full COVID vaccinations for students in residence or on campuses and with governments requiring proof of vaccination for citizens to enter certain establishments such as bars and restaurants.  Now, an additional issue has increasingly emerged as the result of employers and governments requiring COVID vaccination for employees in selected sectors, especially in Canada.

For example, on October 6th, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled Canada’s new mandatory vaccine policy.  It requires the core public service, air travel and rail employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of this October.  The federal vaccine mandate mirrors provincial policies, such as in Nova Scotia where all school and health-care workers are required to have two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of November.  In the health care sector, several hospitals across the country have implemented mandated vaccination requirements for all employees.  Such policies often have deadlines after which unvaccinated employees will face suspensions without pay and possibly termination down the road.  In Ontario, the government has now mandated that all workers in long-term care residences must be fully vaccinated in order to continue working in such facilities.

Needless-to-say, Canada is facing a potential wave of terminations tied to mandatory workplace vaccine policies as a growing number of employers require workers to be fully inoculated against COVID-19 — or risk losing their jobs.  Most legal experts believe that the rights of individual workers will be overridden by the employer’s obligation to make sure the workplace is safe and meet their health and safety obligations toward staff, clients and the public.  It is recognized that there is a delicate balance between the individual rights of workers, such as by offering reasonable accommodations and maintaining a safe work environment.  Recent reviews of Canadian cases involving the balance between individual rights and public health have sided with the latter.  It is noted that while tribunals recognize that rights of individuals are important, in the time of a pandemic reasonable limits are going to be given broad scope.

This situation has led to two additional issues: one being the terminated individual’s right to some form of compensation (e.g. severance pay), and the other being related to workers simply quitting their jobs and thus creating a shortage of skilled labour for employers.  Fortunately, given the current rate of COVID vaccination in Canada for adults 12 and over (slightly more than 80 per cent of all Canadians), the impact on most sectors will be lessened.  Except for a few workplaces, the majority of health care workers, education workers, federal and provincial public servants have received a least one dose of a COVID vaccine.  Even public and private sector unions have generally supported vaccination policies for their workers, while ensuring that reasonable accommodation for unvaccinated workers is part of those policies, particularly where exemptions are granted for medical reasons.  Where mandated vaccination by an employer is seen as imposing a new rule and one that was not part of the original employment agreement, some legal experts believe that the policy’s implementation may be determined to be a termination without cause.  This becomes a case under contract law whereby severance pay would most likely have to be paid to the worker.

Overall, mandating vaccination for workers in certain sectors and by employers with particular valid health and safety considerations should not be taken too lightly.  Such policies represent one of many implemented to control the spread of the delta variant, and can be justified as another temporary public health measure.  In most cases, employers will have to continuously consult with existing employee representatives and unions to ensure that individual rights are being respected where reasonable.  Otherwise, numerous cases involving unvaccinated employees may end up before labour tribunals or the courts.

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Oct 2

Holdouts for COVID Vaccination Will Prolong the Pandemic

by bcurry

In past pandemics and epidemics, the two most critical human reactions have been “fear and misinformation”.  At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, fear reigned among the population because of the unknowns about the nature and spread of the coronavirus.  People were more inclined to accept the implementation of public health measures, restricting their movement and activities.  As it became clearer as to the dangers of COVID, reflected in the increasing numbers of hospitalizations and resulting deaths, governments had to move quickly to lockdown our daily lives, literally closing schools and businesses.  Then, months later, came the miraculous appearance of vaccines against this horrendous disease.  They have proven to be safe and reliable for adults 18 and over.  Vaccines are now viewed as the single most important weapon against COVID and the current spread of its variants.

It cannot be argued that concerns about vaccine safety are behind vaccination hesitancy, especially in light of the scientific evidence based on the millions of people who have been vaccinated.  For example, according to Health Canada, as of Sept. 17, 2021, of 16,090 individual reports of adverse events following vaccination against COVID (0.029 per cent of all doses administered), only 4,288 (0.008 per cent of all administered doses) were considered serious.  One would think that this would reassure people and reduce any vaccine-related fears.  In addition, statistically, the unvaccinated make up the vast majority of current hospitalizations and COVID-related deaths during the current fourth wave.  Let us not forget that about a quarter of Americans age 18 and older reportedly remain unvaccinated.

As for misinformation, regrettably the Internet has continued to play a major role in terms of disseminating misinformation about vaccines and other COVID-related treatments.  In recognition of this, public health officials and Internet providers have had to find effective ways to combat such misinformation, not an easy task given the volume of interactions globally.  However, with valid and reliable information sources available, one would hope that no one can claim to be so misinformed at this time as to promote vaccine hesitancy.

What is most disconcerting today is the fact that there remains a portion of the population in the U.S. and Canada who still don’t believe in being vaccinated against COVID.  Since fear and misinformation shouldn’t play a role, what appears to have happened is the obvious “politicization” of objections to government policies and especially mandates regarding the vaccination of selective groups.  What one hears is that being vaccinated is a “personal choice” and should not be mandated in a free society.  Even among those objecting to mandated vaccination are first responders, including health care workers, police and firefighters.  Moreover, their unions and professional associations appear to be split on the concept of mandated vaccination.  Unfortunately, hundreds of their members have died or will die because of the nature of their work and direct high risk interaction with the public.  One would think that these first responders would want to be protected against the delta variant, along with their loved ones.  For example, in the U.S., COVID was the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths last year, killing at least 182 police officers, according to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund which tracks such deaths.  That’s nearly double the number killed by gun violence and vehicle crashes combined.  At least 133 officers have died of COVID so far this year, according to the same organization.  In Canada, the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions reports that as of September 2021, 54 health care workers have died from COVID-19.

The U.S. has now seen over 700,000 COVID-related deaths.  Given the severity of the fourth wave and the fact that being vaccinated is the only recourse for preventing the worst of the pandemic, governments increasingly will be forced to ensure that the vast majority of their populations are vaccinated.  Otherwise, there is little doubt that holdouts for COVID vaccination will prolong the pandemic.

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