The Religious Exemption is LOL

The short version is- its at the total discretion of the employer.

There are no official forms to be filled out or submitted. The employer is responsible for creating the forms, providing them to employees, keeping them on file and determining whether requests for accommodation are 'valid' or not. There is no govt agency receiving them, reviewing them, authorizing them, denying them, regulating them or even looking at them in any manner at all. The govt has declared that Religious Exemptions exist and has nothing to do with them beyond that. Literally, an employer could just reject all of them or accept all of them.

For those who actually work directly for the governement, there surely must be a process in place for this ...but I havn't found it yet. But for private employers, there is literally no regulation, no oversight and no direction, just 3rd party recommendations from other private companies. Its totally up to them.

...at least so far as I can tell. Can anyone demonstrate otherwise?

IMO this is just a big giant 'out' for fedgov. Its a way to force vaccination without technically forcing vaccination (and thus being responsible for forcing vaccination). If someone gets injured by the vaccine and sues, in court it'll be on the employer- 'did you deny their request for exemption?' If someone gets covid from a coworker and sues, it'll be on the employer- 'why did you accept their request for exemption?'

Once again, as usual, fedgov is just being a huge dick with no balls.

Employers' Guide to the Religious Exemption for the COVID-19 Vaccine | Insights | Venable LLP
How religious exemptions for COVID vaccines work—and how to prevent anti-vaxxers from lying about them. (slate.com)
The sticky problem of 'religious exemption' from vaccine mandates (yahoo.com)

 

There should be no religious exemptions as it is too frequently abused by liars.
Issue solved.

 

Well if lying is a thing, then lets discontinue Welfare too..

 

There shouldn't be any exemptions. If someone chooses anti-vaxx over their job, they lose their job. Simple. We could be nice and offer them unemployment for a few months as they think about their possibilities.

 

Is there a real religion out there that objects to vaccines? Only similar thing I've heard of is jehovah's witnesses refusing transfusions.

 

No major religious denomination in the U.S. opposes vaccination outright. But an individual's "sincerely held" religious belief does not have to be part of an organized-religion mandate to be considered a valid reason for exemption from getting the vaccine.

What constitutes a "sincerely held" religious exemption to a vaccine mandate? - CBS News

 

Why do you think Biden/FedGov specifically said that religious exemptions are allowed? And why do you think they've left it entirely at the employers discretion?

There are not any 'orthodox' aka maintream religions that object to vaccines. There are millions of religious people who object to vaccines for reasons that could be considered 'religious'... There is also a slow but long running trend (in the US) for people of faith to abandon their 'orthodox' religions in preference for a more personal (less authoritatively doctrined) spiritual existence. I'm not saying the two are linked, but I am suggesting they might be!

 

Such exemptions have been given for other vaccines. I don't know why the decision is up to the employer, but being such a subjective decision, the employer is the logical choice, IMO.

 

Yeah!

 

There is nothing else I can think of that the govt has ever backed away from having some regulatory authority over. This is a unicorn. And it merits consideration. There is a meaningful purpose to this...

 

Such intellect is truly rare.

 

What's your theory?

 

Or you could simply act like a NON tolitarian and butt the F out of their medical affairs.

But hey, when you ever employ anyone, then you can play tyrant...until then, all you can do is sit this one out.

 

ATM I think its simply that the govt knows forcing vaccination is unlawful. Its way outside its jurisdiction and so its protecting itself by technically having an excuse that there is an alternative, that 'we didn't do it, businesses did it.' Its a copout.

 

That's not Constitutional. People have freedom of (or from) religion.

 

This might help.

https://www.eastidahonews.com/2021/08/where-do-major-us-religions-stand-on-the-covid-19-vaccination/

 

The real clue is that with increasing numbers of people working from home, the companies are going to have a hell of a time enforcing this drivel. And many will simply sue under the grounds that hippa and other privacy laws preclude them from collecting such information and the current shape of the workforce makes it all but impossible anyway.

 

I'm not following you. Business did what? Gave exemptions? Who else would be qualified to do this? The government doesn't know me. My boss does.

 

That sounds more like medical exemptions. There is a bit more to medical exemptions, depending on the state. CA for example automatically submits any HCP that has 5 or more rejected applications for medical exemption in a year for disciplinary review ...which of course means its going to be impossible to get a medical exemption recommendation from a HCP in CA.

...there is nothing like that anywhere for religious exemptions that I've been able to find.

Tho, I do suspect that WFH folks will have an easy time getting religious exemptions, given that doing so will incur no cost or risk to the employer while eliminating a potential cause for a civil rights suit.

 

In any other situation, the govt would place upon itself an obligation to prevent employers from offering the exemptions carte blanch without any discernment, as 'anti-vaxx' employers now most surely will. Medical exemptions, for a comparitive example, are often subject to official scrutiny, review, and consequences for 'abuse.'

 

Yes, I was going to say that myself, but that's not the government protecting itself. There must be some guidelines; an employer of thousands each claiming religious exemption would raise a few eyebrows. I would expect to see this in small businesses, probably in conservative areas.

Medical exemptions are objective. A religious exemption could be more objective, but the major religions support the vaccines. It's entirely personal, and as such, subject to abuse. "A note from your priest" isn't gonna happen.

 

Raise who's eyebrows? No one is watching, and even if they are, theres no one to report it to and no one has the authority to do anything about it. The govt is protecting itself from having any authority (and thus any associated responsibility) in the matter.

 

More states are banning COVID-19 vaccine mandates in schools. Here are the shots already required

As debates abound over whether coronavirus vaccinations should be required in public schools, many experts point out that students already are required to receive several other routine vaccinations to attend childcare or classes in the United States.

"There is an irony because we've had these long-standing mandatory vaccination requirements for schools," Dr. William Moss, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told CNN on Monday.

But the singling out of coronavirus vaccines seems to be "obviously occurring in a broader social and political context around COVID-19 and the extreme politicization of the disease and vaccines," Moss said. In addition, children are returning to school this year amid the spread of misinformation about coronavirus vaccines.

... https://www.wmur.com/article/school-vaccines-required-states-fighting-mandates/37088549​

And you're just a pawn in this political game. How sad for you, and how tragic for all of those who are dying of this virus because they let this deadly game of politics override their better judgment, or those unable to get necessary care for other ailments because hospitals are full to capacity with these unvaccinated morons.

 

What does that have to do with religious exemptions and the govt's apparent lack of taking any responsibility in regulating how employers implement them?

 

Dems figured out that private employers have more power than they do in certain cases. Rights don't apply to employees of private employers.